Bengaluru: The Income Tax department on Monday revealed its annual performance. In 2017-18, the Investigation Directorate of Karnataka and Goa uncovered concealment of Rs. 12,268 crore of which Rs. 5,339 crore was admitted by the taxpayers. The total seizure made in the year was Rs. 78 crore.
By November 2018, the Directorate had conducted searches resulting in admission and detection of undisclosed income of Rs 4038 crore and Rs 6134 crore respectively with total seizure of Rs 120 crore, a statement from the department said. All these searches have resulted in collecting credible evidence on tax evasion. They revealed a complex web of overseas entities floated by the assesses for laundering money abroad and investments made in foreign assets. These tax evasions violate the Black Money Act, the statement added.
The department conducted searches on politicians, bureaucrats, breweries, MNCs, mining barons, diagnostic centres, trusts, educational institutions, medical colleges, real estate, fisheries. Water Resources Minister DK Shivakumar and others came under the scanner with a money laundering charge against them. The IT department had accused Shivakumar and his aides of transacting unaccounted cash via a hawala network. The recent January 3 raid targeted the residences and offices of Sandalwood actors and producers.
The searches on various government contractors revealed the modus operandi of unaccounted cash. The bulk of the cash seized, the department has said, was meant to influence the electoral outcome. During the Karnataka assembly elections in 2018, there was a cash seizure of Rs 36.95 crore. This figure was less than Rs 5 crore in the last 2013 assembly elections.
Raids in Buntwal constituency have exposed a chain of cash generation, its transportation to various constituencies, collection and distribution at the behest of politicians. One search party was successful to disrupt cash in transit, meant for distribution among electorates. Searches in Mysore had led to cash seizures of over Rs 6 crores from Benami lockers of contractors.
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