Black money chase: Delhi businessmen now hide cash, gold in private vaults

With higher surveillance on banks, top industrialists, realtors, and businessmen with unaccounted cash and bullion are avoiding bank locker services and instead parking their black money in unregulated private vaults sans CCTVs that cost as much as Rs 1.5 lakh a month. So far, the Income Tax department has seized over Rs 800 million from a private vault in Delhi.

The investigation wing of the Delhi Directorate of Income Tax last week raided premises of U& I Vaults Limited, and seized items worth Rs 200 billion. The seized value includes Rs 80 million worth of cash, along with jewellery and bullion worth the remaining amount, sources from the IT department confirmed.

Earlier on January 11, the investigation wing of the IT department had sealed the locker of Gutkha manufacturer and seized Rs 200 million from U & I Vaults, reported Times of India. 
 

This is the third time in a span of 13 days that raids are being conducted in the U&I Vaults office. The company is a subsidiary of the U & I Group, established in 1947, and is the largest Safe Deposit Vault in New Delhi, utilised by several large corporates and banks.

The private lockers or vaults, that operate like normal bank lockers, are illegal and not recognised under the law.

Private vaults the new favourite to stash black money in India?

'Tijoris' at homes of businessmen have been around for years. But instances of cash, bullion and precious stones stashed in private vaults are on the rise as those with undisclosed assets find it easier to deposit it away from their homes or offices. A TOI report said that while many of these, run by local businessmen, are in and around wholesale markets, where cash still dominates transactions, there is a rising trend of them being located in residential localities.

Security services for black money

*Top industralists, builders use private vaults to park black money

* These private lockers had no CCTV cameras - mandatory in case of lockers in banks

* No records available of real beneficiaries who operated these lockers

* Of the lockers, many were benami or belonged to those who never filed their income tax returns