The Income Tax department has summoned some high-networth individuals (HNIs), who were allegedly duped in Rs 400 crore fraud at Citibank, to obtain details of their investments and tax payments. Sources familiar with the development said the department is trying to ascertain the flow of money and check if taxes have been evaded by these HNIs — by way of non-reporting the funds that they put in the “investment scheme” — or by the alleged mastermind of the fraud Shivraj Puri, a relationship manager with the bank’s Gurgaon branch who dealt with them.
The department, which has begun summoning the HNIs in a phased manner, will also probe the angle of unaccounted money which was pumped into the stock market, and whether it could have been laundered.
“Such an information on money laundering will be passed on to the Enforcement Directorate,” sources said.
The entities whose funds were diverted by Puri into the accounts of his relatives include Hero Corporate Services (Rs 13.75 crore), OKS Sapan Tech (Rs 2 crore) and Satyam Auto (Rs 25 crore).
Others include Mayar Infratech (Rs 24 crore), Spaid (Rs 62 crore), Karopat Pad (Rs 8 crore), Sunil Kant and Sons (Rs 3 crore), Aero Infratec (Rs 25 crore), Hero Exports (Rs 97 crore), Rekha Munjal (Rs 5 crore), Munjal Investments (Rs 2.5 crore) and Munab Braej (Rs 71 crore).
The department, according to sources, will question Puri once it obtains preliminary information on the investments and the channels used for routing the money.
In December, Puri was taken into custody for allegedly duping about 40 HNIs investors and corporate entities to the tune of Rs 400 crore.
