Maharashtra: ED attaches fresh assets in I-T refund fraud case

New Delhi: The Enforcement Directorate has attached assets of various people, including the husband of an IPS officer, in connection with a money laundering investigation linked to an alleged Income Tax refund fraud case of Rs 263 crore in Maharashtra, the agency said.

The ED has provisionally attached a flat in Mumbai of Purushottam Chavan, land parcels in Lonavala and Khandala of Rajesh Brijlal Batreja, bank deposits of a company of Anirudh Gandhi, insurance policies of accused Rajesh Shetty and Bhushan Anant Patil, and some fixed deposits worth Rs 14.02 crore, the probe agency said in a statement issued on Friday.

Chavan is the husband of the Indian Police Service (IPS) officer.

To freeze these properties, an order has been issued under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).

The money laundering case stems from a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) FIR against Tanaji Mandal Adhikari, a former senior tax assistant, and others for “fraudulently” generating TDS (tax deducted at source) refunds from the Income Tax Department to the tune of Rs 263.95 crore.

Batreja “helped” Adhikari and others in diverting Rs 55.50 crore “proceeds of crime” outside India with the help of Gandhi, the ED alleged.

“Subsequent to diversion of the proceeds of crime, Batreja with the help of other persons in Dubai, concealed these funds outside India and a part of this was invested in two Indian companies based in Mumbai and Gurugram under the guise of share investment by making cross border remittances, the statement said.

“Batreja voluntarily repatriated a small part of these funds, Rs 1.70 crore,” it said.

Later, the ED claimed, instead of bringing back the remaining money, Batreja “in connivance with” Chavan “diverted” the money.

Adhikari, Patil, Shetty, Batreja and Chavan were arrested and they are currently lodged in jail under judicial custody.

A charge-sheet was filed in the case in September last year against Adhikari and 10 others, and with the latest attachment, the total freezing of assets on this case is about Rs 182 crore.