A month into the November 8 decision by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to demonetise Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 currency notes, the ripples created by the unexpected move continue to be felt across the nation. While on one hand are the never-ending queues as people wait to grab their hands on their own hard-earned money, on the other side of the spectrum is a section of people involved in a nexus to turn their black money into white.
Bankers, it turns out, have made the most out of the decision that left people scrambling to get their old notes exchanged. And while many waited in queues, some connived a nexus with some corrupt bank officials to get huge sums exchanged easily, at a premium.
In its latest raids, the Income-Tax department on Friday said it has found Rs 100 crore deposited in 44 fake accounts operating in the Chandni Chowk branch of Axis Bank in New Delhi.
“Since the demonetisation of high tender notes, over Rs 450 crores has been deposited into these accounts,” I-T sleuths said.
Elsewhere in Surat, police today recovered new 2,000-rupee notes worth 76 lakhs from inside a Honda car. The police have detained four persons in this regard.
Inside the car boot, 38 bundles of new currency notes of Rs 2,000 denomination were found. When the passengers were questioned, they failed to give satisfactory answers and they were taken to the police station.
The scenario unfolded similarly in Mumbai where new currency notes worth Rs 85 lakh were seized by the I-T department. Two persons were taken into custody for questioning by the Mumbai Police Crime Branch sleuths after the cash recovery in Dadar’s Hindu Colony.
On Thursday, the IT department recovered at least Rs 106 crore cash, including Rs 10 crore in new currency, and 127 kgs of gold bars in searches at multiple locations in Chennai to check instances of tax evasion post demonetisation.
