I-T dept mulls action against Mahesh Shah for misleading source of Rs 13,860 cr

According to I-T dept sources, Shah gave names of people to whom the money belonged but could not be verified

Ahmedabad-based businessman Mahesh Shah, who had declared Rs 13,860 crore under IDS in September but failed to pay the first instalment, has been testing the Income Tax Department's patience which is now mulling some action against him.

According to I-T department sources, while the investigation is still on the alleged sources of the unaccounted money, there is a possibility of a FIR being filed against Shah if the latter continued to fail in co-operating with the authorities.

Shah, 67, who is being questioned by the I-T department office in Ahmedabad ever since he appeared on a TV channel on December 4, is learnt to have been misleading I-T officials in revealing the source behind the Rs 13,860 crore of allegedly unaccounted money that was declared under IDS.

According to I-T department sources, Shah gave names of people to whom the money belonged but could not be verified by the department. Apparently, I-T department's verification of the names revealed by Shah turned out to be fake.

"He claimed that these names were from cities of Ahmedabad, Mumbai and Hyderabad, among others. However, he also claimed that he had forgotten their addresses," sources said.

Shah had gone missing after he failed to pay the first instalment or 25 per cent of the 45 per cent tax on the Rs 13,860 crore worth undisclosed money which he had mentioned in the form he had filled under IDS in September. Two days prior to the November 30 deadline of the first instalment, I-T department searched 15 places in Gujarat, Mumbai including Shah's residence and his CA Tehmul Sethna's premises.

Two days later, Shah resurfaced on a private TV channel and claimed that he was just a pawn and those powerful people to whom the money belonged backed out at the last moment.