The Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) yesterday directed the Income Tax department to scrutinize 30,000 cases of alleged tax evasion wherein the income returns or ITRs were revised by assessees post demonetization.
This is to tackle assessees who did not report about their bank accounts to the tax authority even after the first phase of ‘Operation Clean Money’, said CBDT Head Sushil Chandra.
He said that these cases were detected after the Tax authorities scrutinized latest ITRs – filed after November 8 – against their earlier tax compliance.
‘Operation Clean Money’ was launched by the Government to verify the transaction made after demonetization. Recently, the Department identified 5.56 lakh new persons whose tax profiles were found to be inconsistent with the cash deposits made by them during the demonetization period.
Under Operation Clean Money, details of the cash deposited in bank accounts aggregating to Rs 2 lakh or more are required to be given in the ITR. This information will be matched with the information in possession of the Income Tax Department.
The operations were carried out during the second phase of Operation Clean Money. In the first phase, 1.79 million people were identified for e-verification as they had made large cash deposits. “We are taking action in these instances,” Chandra said.
Chandra also talked about newly enacted Benami Transactions Act under which the tax department has made attachments worth Rs 840 crore in 233 cases till now. “We have found that many shell companies are owning such (benami) properties. Action will be taken,” he added.
