The Income Tax (I-T) department has seized cash, gold and silver jewelry worth over Rs 43 crore in Maharashtra ahead of the assembly elections. The amount is 50 percent higher than that seized during the general election.
The investigation wing of the I-T Department has seized around Rs 43.18 crore since September 27, of which Rs 2 crore was released after documents of the cash and valuables were furnished before it.
A source with knowledge of the seizures told Moneycontrol, "The department was keeping an eye on large withdrawals from banks, which was helpful in tracking the money. Along with this, the network of the Income Tax Department had been providing good leads to attach properties of suspicious people.”
During the 2019 Lok Sabha election, the I-T department had seized around Rs 28 crore in the state, of which Rs 17 crore was confiscated in Mumbai alone.
Another source told Moneycontrol, "The [I-T] Department had tapped obvious routes of money transfer earlier like the use of Angadia — in Gujarati term for those who carry goods on their person -- who transfer cash in other states.”
The department was handed over around Rs 14 crore seized by the police, FS and SST which included gold and other valuables amounting to Rs 3.5 crore. Out of this total, Rs 9 crore was seized under the Income Tax Act, while the remaining was returned by the department. Sou motto, the department seized around Rs 32.42 crore, including gold and silver ornaments worth Rs 1.30 crore.
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