Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, Sept 10: Income Tax Department has detected concealment of Rs 8 crore income by two prominent jewelers of Jammu whose premises were surveyed on September 8 following the inputs that they were indulging in evasion of tax. After being completely trapped in the net of the taxmen, one of them surrendered Rs 2 crore undisclosed income.
Official sources told EXCELSIOR that during the simultaneous surveys conducted in the premises of Shankar Shah Jewelers and Rakesh Jewelers on September 7, the Income Tax Department sleuths laid hands on several incriminating documents and noticed glaring discrepancies in the stock maintenance registers”.
“The stock in the premises of both the jewelers was not in consonance with that mentioned in the registers and this was intentionally done to conceal the income and subsequently evade the tax, which otherwise runs in crores of rupees”, sources said, adding “everything become crystal clear when the IT sleuths scrutinized the impounded documents and analyzed the same in comparison with the actual stock found in the premises of both the jewelers”.
During preliminary examination of the record, the IT Department detected concealment of Rs 8 crore by the jewelers. Of this, Rs 5.5 crore has been worked out in respect of Shanker Shah jewelers and Rs 2.5 crore in case of Rakesh Jewelers.
When contacted, Income Tax Commissioner, J&K Circle, A K Thatai confirmed that concealment of Rs 8 crore has been detected in the shape of discrepancies in the stock, bogus cash credits and investments following surveys in three premises of Shanker Shah group and two of Rakesh Jewelers.
“Following completion of preliminary scrutiny of the impounded documents and other exercise, Shanker Shah group surrendered Rs 2 crore undisclosed income while as Rakesh jewelers was reluctant to do so despite the fact that documents impounded from this group’s premises indicate large scale tax evasion”, Mr Thatai said, adding “now, we will start out next course of action in both these cases as per the provisions of Income Tax Act”.
In response to a question, the Income Tax Commissioner said, “there was no proper maintenance of the stock in the books in any of the premises of both the groups. Though these groups were of the impression that they would be able to conceal the income and evade the tax yet vigilant IT sleuths foiled their attempts”.
Terming these surveys as beginning of a vigorous exercise to tighten noose around the tax evadors, Mr Thatai said, “we will deeply analyze the payment of Advance Tax, the due date of which is September 15, 2012, and thereafter we will intensify our drive to unearth the tax evasion in all the trades that too across the State”, adding “we are regularly updating our scrutiny lists on the basis of inputs and detailed exercise being carried out by the Assessing Officers of the Department and the same would be the basis for our future course of action”.
Responding to another question, the IT Commissioner said, “we want people to come forward and voluntarily disclose their exact income and pay tax accordingly. The reluctance on their part would compel us to knock their doors with heavy hands”.
“The representatives of different trade bodies should act as bridge between the Income Tax Department and the tax payers. When we are ready to help the assessees as per the provisions of Income Tax Department, the assessees should also fulfill their legal obligation of disclosing the exact income and paying tax accordingly by keeping in mind that the paid tax comes back for the development of the State”, he said.
In response to another query, the IT Commissioner said, “we have credible information about the tax evasion attempts in Kashmir valley also and very shortly we will tighten noose around such assessees very shorly”. He, however, hoped that people would voluntarily come forward from all parts of the State instead of forcing the IT sleuths to knock at their doors.
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