*Bureaucrats, real estate dealers under scanner for illegal act
Mohinder Verma
JAMMU, Nov 11: Two days after Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced demonetization of Rs 500 and Rs 1000 currency notes in order to unearth black money stashed within the country, the sleuths of Income Tax Department, J&K Circle, today conducted surveys in the business establishments of 26 leading jewellers in four districts and foiled their attempts to adjust black money of the people by showing sales of gold and gold bars in the back date. With the timely action of the taxmen, several bureaucrats, real estate dealers, police officers and other highly influential persons, who were approaching the bullion dealers for illegal activity, have come under the scanner of the Income Tax Department.
Official sources told EXCELSIOR that yesterday Income Tax Department received information from different sources that majority of the top bullion dealers were making attempts to illegally bring the demonetized currency notes into their trade by showing sale of gold and gold bars in back date and charging the rates 100% to 150% beyond the prevailing rates.
The IT Department also came to know that bureaucrats, real estate dealers, police officers and other highly influential persons were in constant touch with the top bullion dealers to adjust their black money by showing sales in back date, they said while disclosing that several jewellers even succeeded in their attempts to illegally bring the demonetized currency notes of Rs 500 and Rs 1000 denomination into their trade.
Acting swiftly on these inputs, Principal Commi-ssioner of Income Tax, J&K Circle, Sangeeta Gupta constituted different teams last evening with the direction to simultaneously carry out surveys in the business establishments of all the leading jewellers so as to tighten noose around them and to prevent them from defeating the intent of the Government to curb the black money.
The teams carried out surveys in the establishments of 26 leading jewellers, who were in bullion trade in Jammu, Samba, Kathua and Udhampur districts of Jammu region. “The surveys which started in the morning continued till late evening with Income Tax Department sleuths laying hands on several documents clearly reflecting adjustment of demonetized currency by charging exorbitant rates of gold and gold bars from the holders of black money”, sources informed.
The jewellers whose premises were surveyed by the IT sleuths are Ch Shanker Shah Ishar Dass, Rakesh Kumar and Sons, Silverlines, Talla Jewellers, Vardhman Jewellers, Tilak Raj and Sons, Sham Jewellers, Vijay Jewellers, R P Jewellers, Verma Jewellers (Udhampur), Choice Jewellers (Udhampur), Veeru Ornaments (Udha-mpur), Sham Jewellers, Mulk Raj Ashok Kumar, Khajuria Jewellers, Radhika Jewellers, Roop Lal Sudan (Kathua), Rajinder Kumar (Kathua) and Shiv Kumar Gupta (Kathua) and R J Gold.
“The cases of all the 26 jewellers will be put to scrutiny and they will have to face the music for trying to defeat the objective behind demonetization of currency notes of Rs 500 and Rs 1000”, sources said.
About the modus operandi of the jewellers detected during the surveys, sources said, “instead of closing their bill books, cash books and stock books from November 8 mid-night when the decision announced by the Prime Minister became applicable, they continued to make entries of sales by mentioning the previous dates more particularly of November 8”.
“In this way they were not only helping the black money holders but also obtaining undue benefit by adjusting their undeclared stocks”, sources said, adding “by reflecting the sale of gold and gold bars on previous dates they tried to regularize their sales”. It was found that sales of several jewellers recorded on November 8 were equivalent to the sales recorded during the past six months.
They informed that the books of accounts and other documents like bill books, cash register and accounts statements of all these jewellers were identified by the IT sleuths during the surveys and seal put on the last bills/entries made as on date so as to ensure that they don’t indulge in such illegal activities any more.
“The act on the part of the jewellers clearly establishes that despite repeated warnings and instructions by the Income Tax Department they didn’t mend their ways and continue to hide their stocks”, sources said, adding “moreover, it has also come to the fore that there are huge number of people in Jammu and Kashmir who had intentionally chose not to avail the benefit of Income Declaration Scheme which came to an end on September 30, 2016”.
Responding to a question, sources said that not only all these jewellers who had attempted to defeat the intent of the Government to curb the black money but also those who made purchases of gold and gold bars by using demonetized currency will face music from the Income Tax Department and their cases will be put to scrutiny for action as warranted under law. “The focus will be more on the sales recorded on November 8”, they said.
They disclosed that those who made use of demonetized currency to purchase gold include bureaucrats, police officers, real estate dealers and other highly influential persons. “They were under the wrong impression that they would be able to adjust most of their black money as IT department will leave no stone unturned to lay hands on them”, sources added.
“What to talk of top jewellers of Jammu even the small bullion dealers of Samba, Kathua and Udhampur districts tried their level best to adjust the black money by showing sales in back date but the action of IT sleuths will go a long way in ensuring successful implementation of the decision taken by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Jammu and Kashmir”, sources said.
When contacted, Principal Commissioner of Income Tax J&K Circle, Sangeeta Gupta confirmed the action and advised the traders and all others to desist from such illegal activities as the department is keeping strict vigil on all such activities. She has warned of strict action if any such attempt is made by any person in future.
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