India

Rs 40 crore fraud in income tax refunds discovered in Hyderabad, Vijayawada

The Income Tax Department has discovered a massive tax refund fraud to the tune of Rs 40 crore involving tax consultants, numerous railway and police department employees and software professionals in Hyderabad and Vijayawada, according to a Times of India report.

At least eight tax consultants are being investigated in the matter as each of them submitted as many as 500 to 1,000 I-T returns with false documents of contribution to pension funds and under Section 80DD which gives exemption on income tax for taking care of disabled dependents.

The consultants approached the government department employees and offered to submit their returns and get them a tax refund in return for a 10% commission on the amount. Some employees were unaware that it was a fraudulent scheme and were ready to give their details as they would get a tax refund in exchange for a commission, according to an investigating official.

Section 80CCC allows for a tax exemption of up to Rs 1.5 lakh for investment in pension funds and these tax consultants attached false documents to claim a refund under this clause.

Income Tax Department officials are of the view that this is merely a tip of the proverbial iceberg and the actual fraud may turn out to be much bigger as a full scale investigations have been launched into the racket in both Hyderabad and Vijayawada.

Notices of prosecution will be sent to government officials and software professionals involved and criminal cases will be filed after the investigations are completed.

AddThis Website Tools
IN Bureau

Recent Posts

India self-reliant during Op Sindoor; Pak leveraging Chinese sources: CDS Gen Anil Chauhan

Highlighting the use of indigenous platforms during Operation Sindoor, Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) General…

2 hours ago

Colombia withdraws statement for Pakistan, will issue strong support for India: Shashi Tharoor

Congress MP Shashi Tharoor on Friday (local time) said that Colombia will issue a statement…

3 hours ago

Ministry working on PhD programme for fundamental research on AI: Ashwini Vaishnaw

Minister for Electronics and Information Technology Ashwini Vaishnaw said on Friday that the government is…

18 hours ago

Amjad Ayub Mirza slams Pakistan’s crackdown in PoGB, calls land reform bill a military land grab

Renowned human rights activist and political analyst Amjad Ayub Mirza has expressed a strong denunciation…

18 hours ago

India’s GDP grew 6.5% in 2024-25, 7.4% in Q4: Official data

As was widely expected, the Indian economy grew by 6.5 per cent in real terms…

19 hours ago

WHO urges members to curb tobacco consumption under “Unmasking the Appeal” theme

World No Tobacco Day, marked annually on 31 May, addresses a major public health challenge--the…

20 hours ago