In the case pertaining to Sonu Sood tax fraud, new developments emerged today. Tax department claimed that Sood evaded Rs. 20 crores of tax. Sood has also been accused of violating the FCRA (Foreign Contribution Regulation Act).
The development comes after Sood was under scrutiny by the I-T department since the past 3 days. According to reports, as many as 28 properties associated with Sood came under a ‘survey’ that the Income Tax department was conducting.
Details
Sonu Sood has been making headlines for the better part of the past two years. News around him extensively cover the philanthropic gestures he makes. However, recently Sood was in the news for reasons he and his fans would not have liked. The actor-turned-philanthropist was under the Income Tax microscope recently.
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The Facts of the Matter
After multiple days of ‘surveys’ that were conducted at several of properties associated with Sood, the initial verdict is out. According to the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT), the actor and his company evaded taxes worth Rs. 20 crores. Further, the entity also found Sood guilty of violating the Foreign Contribution Regulation Act when Sood raised funds from outside the nation.
“Modus Operandi Followed by Actor”
The CBDT in its statement said, “During the course of search at the premises of the actor and his associates, incriminating evidence pertaining to tax evasion has been found. The main modus operandi followed by the actor had been to route his unaccounted income in the form of bogus unsecured loans from many bogus entities.”
The CBDT also claimed that during its investigation, it found that 20 of such entries were made. Further, the statement claimed that upon examination, the providers of the entries accepted the fact that they had given “bogus accommodation entries”.
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Loans Camouflaged to Acquire Properties & Make Investments
Further the statement also said that there were cases where receipts were “camouflaged” as loans in account books, so that tax could be evaded. Moreover, it was also revealed that certain bogus loans were used to acquire properties and make investments.
“The total amount of tax evaded unearthed so far, amounts to more than ₹ 20 crore,” the statement added.
Sood Foundation Violation of FCRA
The statement also alleged that Sood’s charity foundation raised funds worth Rs. 2.1 crores from overseas donor in violation of the FCRA rules. Moreover, the tax entity claimed that the charity foundation by Sood collected donations worth Rs. 18.94 crores, out of which, only Rs. 1.9 crores were spent for relief work. A balance of Rs. 17 crores is still in the bank account of the foundation.
“The charity foundation incorporated by the actor on July 21, 2020 has collected donations to the tune of Rs 18.94 crore from April 1, 2021 till date, out of which it has spent around Rs 1.9 crore towards various relief work and the balance of Rs 17 crore has been found lying unutilised in the bank account of the foundation till date,” the statement read.
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How the Tax Department Unearthed the Irregularities
The tax department also gave an insight as to how the irregularities were unheard at the first place. “The simultaneous search operations carried out at various premises of an infrastructure group in Lucknow in which the actor has entered into a joint venture real estate project and invested substantial funds, have resulted in unearthing of incriminating evidences pertaining to tax evasion and irregularities in the books of account,” the statement read.
