I-T recovers Rs 10 cr cash, seals 12 lockers of Asian Granito Ltd

Ahmedabad, May 26 In a mega search operation on Asian Granito India Ltd, the Income Tax Department has recovered Rs 10 crore cash and has sealed 12 bank lockers. The search is likely to continue for the next few days.

Sources from the department said, based from the company's account books, it felt that some transactions tally are not matching and so it decided to carry out search on the company's offices, factories, owners and financier's premises. A mega search operation started on Thursday morning and till evening they collected huge documental evidences, digital evidence suggesting tax evasion.

The search is being carried out at 30 places in Ahmedabad, that includes the corporate head office at Iscon Square on the SG highway, Paldi office, residential premises of owner Kamlesh Patel, Mukesh Patel, Suresh Patel, company's financiers Sanket Shah, Ruchit Shah, Dipak Shah and Sejal Shah's premises. Searches are going on outside Ahmedabad at 10 other locations that include factories at Morbi, Himmatnagar and Surat, sources said.

Company owners and their family members' 12 bank lockers have been sealed. These lockers will be investigated once the search operation and recording of statement is over, said Income Tax department source.

According to the Income Tax department, the company was using a new modus operandi to convert black money into white, they were taking white entry from financiers in the form of loan, investment, share investment, bogus bill purchase, unaccounted bank entries against the cash. Department officials will check each and every transaction of such entries to find out the exact volume of tax evasion.

Some 200 Income Tax officers are involved in the search operation. Considering the volume, the search is likely to continue for a few more days, said sources.