Vijayawada: I-T officials identify black money deals

Vijayawada: The income tax department has identified that black money transactions have been taking place from Vijayawada city through around 200 accounts, which are either inoperative or under the control of a few middlemen. The IT department has identified that around Rs 2,000 crore black money has been transferred to different accounts within a span of three months.

The IT department has sent notices to the account-holders as to from where the money was deposited, connection between the account-holder and people who credited the money into their accounts. Following a huge transaction of around Rs 19 crore that took place through the account of a businessman from One Town in Vijayawada city, the IT department started enquiring into the episode and found out initially that around 200 account-holders became victims of black money transactions and the IT department also focused on the involvement of bank officials of six nationalised and private banks.

The income tax department officials found out that all these transactions took place between November 2016 and February this year. The black money holders have chosen staff members of their companies, Dwcra members and workers of Food For Work programme under MGNREGA, which was identified by the IT department officials in their initial inquiry. It is learnt that these black money holders have given an assurance that 10 to 20 per cent commission would be given to them for allowing them to do transactions through their accounts.

However, the I-T department officials are examining the accounts of small-time employees in private firms, NREGA workers and some inoperative accounts, which are suspicious in nature. It is learnt that the black money holders have approached a few bankers in Vijayawada city in order to find out the inoperative accounts to do black money transactions through such accounts. “We kept an eye over the people who are into such kind of operations and at this stage, we can’t divulge any information,” a senior income tax official told this correspondent.