Income Tax Department conducts searches in Kerala on two organizations involved in quarry operations

Income Tax Department conducts searches in Kerala on two organizations involved in quarry operations On January 5, 2022, the Income Tax Department conducted a search and seizure operation on two organizations involved in quarry operations. The search effort encompassed more than 35 locations in the districts of Kottayam, Eranakulam, Thrissur, Palakkad, and Kannur. Various damning documents and digital evidence, including a parallel set of books of account recording the entries of actual sales and cash receipts, were discovered and seized during the search operation. These evidences have clearly disclosed the quarry owners' method of operation, since they are suppressing cash sales on a huge scale, despite the fact that these transactions are not recorded in the group's regular books of account. The evidence suggests that unexplained cash is systematically spent in the acquisition of immovable properties, used for the business of cash loans, and unrecorded capital investments in other enterprises, based on the linkage of these evidences. The investigation team has also discovered proof of on-time payments for property purchases and large cash transfers in hidden bank accounts. The group's assessees were discovered to have sold immovable assets without properly accounting for the capital gains generated by such transactions. The search operation resulted in the seizure of about Rs 2.30 crore in undeclared cash. So far, the investigation has resulted in the discovery of approximately Rs. 200 crore in unaccounted revenue. More research is being carried out.