The Income Tax Department carried out search and seizure operations on 22.12.2021 on two business groups of Nandurbar and Dhule districts of Maharashtra. These groups are engaged in the business of civil construction and land development. The search operation covered more than 25 premises spread across Nanndurbar, Dhule and Nashik. 

During the search and seizure operation many incriminating documents, loose papers, and digital evidences have been found and seized.

In the case of entities belonging to the first group, the seized documents clearly reveal that they have resorted to large-scale suppression of taxable income by inflating their expenses, primarily by way of the claim of non-genuine sub-contract expenses and unverifiable old sundry creditors. The search team has detected that these subcontracts have been awarded to family members and their employees who have not rendered services in this regard. Evidence has also been gathered about unrecorded expenses incurred in cash. The preliminary investigation indicates that this group has evaded income to the extent of ₹ 150 crore on account of the above malpractices.

In the case of the land developers, it has been found that a substantial part of the land transactions have been carried out in cash which are not accounted for in the regular books of account. Further, incriminating documents evidencing receipt of ‘on-money’ on land transactions and cash loans exceeding ₹ 52 crore have been found and seized. 

The search action has, so far, resulted in the seizure of unaccounted cash of more than ₹ 5 crore and jewellery valued at ₹ 5 crore. 

Further investigations are in progress.

Search and seizure operations reveal systematic suppression of taxable income via fictitious subcontracts and unaccounted cash in land deals. Search and seizure operations on construction and land-development businesses produced incriminating documents and digital evidence indicating suppression of taxable income by inflating expenses through non-genuine sub-contracts to relatives and unverifiable creditors, unrecorded cash expenses, and extensive unaccounted cash land transactions including receipts of 'on-money' and large cash loans; seizures of unaccounted cash and jewellery were made and further investigations continue.