The husband of a senior IPS officer in Maharashtra was subjected to a raid by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) before his arrest in connection with an Income Tax case. During the raid, property documents valued at approximately Rs 150 crores were recovered from his residence. According to sources, this operation was part of an investigation into a Rs 263 crore Income Tax returns fraud.
The raid took place a few days ago at the official residence of the IPS officer in Colaba. Her husband, Purshottam Chavan, was arrested earlier this week by the central probe agency.Â
During the search, officials discovered documents for around fourteen flats located in Mumbai and Thane, including two large flats in Worli. Additionally, they found documents about Transferable Development Rights (TDR) for Mumbai and Pune. Sources estimate the total value of these assets to be around Rs 150 crores. Although the property documents are registered in multiple names, there is suspicion that these could be benami assets, created in the names of these individuals to conceal the true ownership.
Chavan was arrested on May 5 under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002, for his involvement in a Rs 263 crore Income Tax refund fraud. He allegedly assured one of the accused, Rajesh Batra, that he could facilitate relief in the tax case in exchange for Rs 12 crores.
Previously, four individuals were arrested in connection with this case: Tanaji Mandal Adhikari, Bhushan Patil, Rajesh Shetty, who are in judicial custody, and Rajesh Brijlal Batra, who is currently in ED custody.
The Enforcement Directorate began its investigation based on an FIR registered by the CBI, Delhi, under various sections of the Indian Penal Code and the Prevention of Corruption Act. This FIR was against Tanaji Mandal Adhikari and others for fraudulently generating and issuing TDS (Tax Deducted at Source) refunds from the Income Tax Department amounting to Rs 263.95 crores.
The investigation revealed that Rajesh Brijlal Batra and Purshottam Chavan were in regular contact, sharing incriminating messages related to hawala transactions and the diversion of illegally obtained money, also known as the Proceeds of Crime.
In addition to property documents, the ED also seized foreign currency and mobile phones. It was discovered that Purshottam Chavan attempted to obstruct the investigation by destroying evidence that could further trace the money.
Chavan was arrested again on May 20 and presented before the Special PMLA Court in Mumbai, which granted ED custody until May 27.
So far in this case, immovable and movable properties valued at Rs 168 crores have been identified and seized/attached. In September 2023, a complaint was also filed against Tanaji Mandal Adhikari and ten others.
The investigation is ongoing.
