I-T sleuths raid Chettinad group

New Delhi: The Income Tax Department has detected tax evasion of more than Rs 700 crore after it recently raided multiple locations of Chennai-based Chettinad Group, the CBDT and official sources said on Tuesday. "The highlight of the search includes seizure of unaccounted cash of Rs 23 crore from various locations," the CBDT said in a statement. "As of now, the department has succeeded in detecting evasion of income of over Rs 700 crore," it said.

The statement claimed that tax sleuths also detected documents related to possession of "foreign assets to the extent of Rs 110 crore in the form of fixed deposits, which were not disclosed in the return (income tax return) and will attract action under the Black Money Act". The taxman had raided 60 premises of the Tamil Nadu-based group in Chennai, Trichy (Tiruchirappalli), various locations in Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Mumbai on December 9.

While the CBDT said its action and further detections were made against a "leading business group operating from Chennai, based on intelligence input about tax evasion", the official sources identified it as the about 100-years-old Chettinad Group. The group is involved in business activities like cement manufacturing, logistics, construction, among others, the CBDT said.