ED told to disclose property details of Paonta firm

Vijay Arora

Shimla, June 14

The HP High Court today directed the Directorate of Enforcement and state CID to file their respective affidavits disclosing property details of Paonta Sahib-based Indian Technomac Company Limited and its Directors that have surfaced during the course of their investigation.

The court passed this order on a Company Petition filed by other stakeholders of the company claiming their share in the company assets.

During the course of hearing, it was informed to the court that property details are available with the Directorate of Enforcement and the CID as these agencies have been carrying out investigation in this case for the last two years. Justice Tarlok Singh Chauhan further directed both the investigating agencies to file their affidavits disclosing the property details of the company and its directors within four weeks and listed the matter for further hearing on July 12.

The management of Indian Technomac Company Limited is allegedly involved in the multi-crore embezzlement case. The Economic Intelligence Unit of the Excise and Taxation Department had detected this fraud on February 18, 2014 as a huge mismatch was found in the return filed by the company and the VAT-26-A declarations. The company was manufacturing steel and raw materials, ferro alloys and steel ingots and it had become liable to pay tax from January 2008.

The Excise and Taxation Department alone had suffered tax evasion worth Rs 2,175.51 crore, various banks were defaulted to the tune of Rs 2,167 crore and the Income Tax Department owned around Rs 750 crore. The Employees Provident Fund, HPSEB and labour departments owed another Rs 20 crore.

As per this case, the HP State Electricity Board Limited was duped of Rs 4,49,80,291/- by the company in 2014 where fake RTGS receipts had been furnished towards payment of the electricity bill. A case had been registered for criminal conspiracy, cheating and forgery in this matter in April 2016 by the CID.

An FIR had been registered under Sections 120-B, 420, 467, 468, 471, 201, 217, 218 and Sections 5,7, 13 (1) and D(II) of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988, against the company management in 2016 by the CID. The scam was detected in 2014.

Tax evasion and other wrongdoings

• The Excise and Taxation Department alone had suffered tax evasion worth Rs 2,175.51 crore, various banks were defaulted to the tune of  Rs 2,167 crore and the Income Tax Department owned around Rs 750 crore. 
• The Employees Provident Fund, HPSEB and labour departments owed another Rs 20 crore. 
• The investigating agencies told to file their affidavits disclosing property details of the company and its directors within four weeks
• The court listed the matter for further hearing on July 12.