The digital currency, Bitcoin have been surging the past few days. But does this digital currency curb the flow of black money and corruption?
Six days after income-tax “surveys” were conducted on nine Bitcoin exchanges across India to identify investors and traders linked to these exchanges and their cryptocurrency transactions, principal directorate of income-tax (investigation), Chandigarh raided Mohali-based Mark Software Systems Group.
Owners of the IT firm allegedly are one of the leading investors in cryptocurrencies, especially bitcoins, in the region.
The monthly trade of unregulated cryptocurrencies in India is estimated to be between Rs 5,000 crore and Rs 10,000 crore, but there are no concrete figures. Cryptocurrencies, particularly bitcoins, are in great demand the world over especially as bitcoin futures almost breached the $20,000-mark recently. The income-tax department had indicated earlier that some tax evaders could be using black money in bitcoin exchanges in India.
In addition to raiding the Mohali office of the firm, the owner’s residence and other premises located in Sectors 21 and 34 in Chandigarh too have been raided by the income-tax department.
According to sources in the income-tax department, unaccounted cash amounting to Rs 40 lakh has been seized so far. The raid, which started as a “survey” on Tuesday night was converted into a search after income-tax sleuths found some incriminating evidence of tax evasion by the software firm.
The sources also revealed that action against the IT firm was taken on suspicion that its owner was not presenting the real picture of the firm’s income to the income-tax department, especially when comparing the scale of the firm’s operations to its income. While investigating the owner’s investment and trading of bitcoins, the income-tax investigation wing is also examining the software firm’s foreign dealings, export income and quantum of sales and expenditure to ascertain whether any suppression of sales has been done by the owners.
The raid on the group also comes in the wake of the decision of the income-tax department to send notices to 4 to 5 lakh high net worth individuals across the country who had been trading in cryptocurrencies, including Bitcoins whose value is hovering around Rs 11 lakh in India presently.
The notices are being sent to these investors under suspicion of tax evasion by investing in the cryptocurrencies and cashing out the profits without declaring it in their income.
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