IT dept detects Rs 400 crore black income after raids on two Delhi-NCR realty groups
Mumbai: Former Mumbai police commissioner Param Bir Singh has no first hand information on his corruption allegations against ex-Maharashtra home minister Anil Deshmukh as details of alleged wrongdoing were provided to him by some officers, a lawyer of the senior IPS officer told an inquiry commission on Tuesday.
The commission, headed by retired Justice K U Chandiwal, is probing allegations of corruption and misuse of official position levelled against Deshmukh.
In March this year, the Maharashtra government had formed the one-member commission to probe Singh's allegations against the NCP leader (71), who resigned from the state cabinet in April after a Bombay High Court order.
On Tuesday, cross-examination of dismissed Mumbai police officer Sachin Waze was listed before the panel.
As the proceedings began, Waze moved a plea before the commission seeking to defer his cross-examination till Singh appears before the inquiry panel or files an affidavit.
However, the commission rejected his plea.
During the arguments, Singh's lawyer Abhinav Chandrachud reiterated that the senior IPS officer does not have any further evidence to share in the matter.
"I believe his (Waze's) apprehension is that today he is going to step into the witness box and tomorrow my client (Singh) will say something entirely different. "The affidavit will take a week. It will say nothing more than what has already been said, which is that the information given to him was provided by some officers...he (Singh) has no first hand information of what transpired," the lawyer said.
"His information in that sense is hearsay. Even if he were to step into the witness box it would have no value in law because it would be what someone else told him. Therefore, he has nothing to depose," Chandrachud added.
Despite the commission issuing multiple summonses and a bailable warrant against Singh, he has not appeared before it so far.
On Tuesday, his lawyer told the commission that Singh will file another affidavit pertaining to the matter.
Earlier, the former Mumbai police commissioner, in an affidavit, had told the commission he does not have any further evidence to share in the matter.
Days after he was shunted out as Mumbai police commissioner and transferred to the Home Guards in March this year, Singh had claimed in a letter to Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray that Deshmukh used to ask police officers to collect money from restaurant and bar owners in Mumbai.
The NCP leader has repeatedly denied the allegations against him.
The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and the Enforcement Directorate (ED) are separately probing corruption and money laundering allegations against Deshmukh.
The former minister is in judicial custody in the case related to alleged money laundering.
New Delhi, Nov 24 (PTI) The Income Tax Department has detected an estimated undisclosed income of Rs 400 crore after it raided two real estate groups based in Delhi and the national capital region, the CBDT said on Wednesday.
The unidentified groups engaged in construction of commercial and residential projects were searched on November 17.
The Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) said in a statement that the preliminary analysis of the seized data found that the groups were receiving part of the sale consideration in cash against the sale of flats and such cash is not recorded in the books of accounts.
It claimed, there is a "large scale tax evasion" and due tax on such income has not been offered.
"The evidence gathered so far, prima facie, indicates that undisclosed income could be to the tune of about Rs 400 crore," the statement said, adding Rs 10 crore cash was seized during the raids.
The CBDT said evidence gathered during the action indicated that unaccounted income that was earned was routed into the business through non-descript and non-functional shell entities run by professional entry providers or employees/associates of the group working as directors.
"One of the groups has also been found to be using a network of charitable organisations engaged in educational activities, purportedly for the purpose of tax evasion and financing its real estate business," it said.
"Evidence has also been found showing that the books of accounts maintained and produced before tax authorities are doctored by 'reversal of payables', 'diminution of investment' and 'bad debts written- off'," it said.
Certain instances of non-genuine claim of expenses by way of bogus purchases by connected parties from non-existent suppliers have also come to notice, the statement said.
It said certain "evidences" of cash payments made to various parties towards securing land deals and other contracts and making various unaccounted expenses in real estate activities have also been unearthed.
