I-T raids on Mumbai's civil contractors unearth irregularities of ₹375 cr

In the backdrop of the longstanding logjam over government formation in Maharashtra, the Income Tax department has unearthed alleged irregularities to the tune of Rs 735 crore after conducting raids on civil contractors of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), said Central Board of Direct Taxation (CBDT), a policy-making body of the Income Tax department, on Thursday  (November 14).

Reports said the raids were conducted on 44 locations in Mumbai and Surat (Gujarat) on November 6 on entry providers and beneficiaries engaged in execution of civil contracts with the BMC.

Incriminating documents showing large scale tax evasion and money laundering, were seized during the raids, the CBDT said.

Among, the contractors, two were identified to be blacklisted by the BMC in 2017 for substandard work after a probe into the Rs 350 crore road scam.

“Incriminating evidence showing large-scale tax evasion and money laundering has been found. It has also led to the detection of the use of bogus companies [floated by entry providers] for giving entries to businesses in the form of loans or bills for expenses, etc,” Hindustan Times quoted the I-T statement as saying on Thursday.

(With inputs from agencies)