In a bizarre twist of events, Chandrashekhar Kohad, a petty contractor originally from Nagpur and currently living in Multai, Madhya Pradesh, has been served a staggering Rs 314 crore income tax demand - an amount he says he cannot even comprehend. The tax notice stems from alleged unaccounted funds routed through his account in a cooperative credit society, now suspected to be linked to a Rs 560 crore hawala scam under probe by the ED.
According to documents shared by Kohad, the original tax demand was Rs 185 crore, covering assessment years 2011-12 to 2015-16. However, the sum ballooned to Rs 314 crore after interest was added. The demand was raised after huge deposits were discovered in his account with a cooperative credit society located in the Itwari area of Nagpur.
ED Summons Ignored Due to Financial Inability
In 2020, Kohad was also summoned by the ED's office in Visakhapatnam (Vizag) in connection with the hawala case. However, he claims he could not respond to the summons due to his inability to travel such a long distance. "I couldn't afford to go to Vizag," he said.
On Tuesday, Kohad rode over 120 kilometers from Multai to Nagpur on a motorcycle to visit the income tax office, only to find that the concerned tax officer was on leave. He was advised to file an appeal before the Commissioner of Income Tax (CIT) Appeals.
Suspected Role of Cooperative Society in Money Laundering
Kohad alleges that his account may have been misused by the cooperative society's management for laundering large sums of money. "I didn't even know how much money came into my account," he said. The society in question, believed to be Shrinath Mangalam Cooperative or Mangalam Cooperative, has since had its accounts sealed following a separate scam.
"I used the cooperative because they had a daily collection agent. Now I can't even remember how much of my own money was in there," Kohad told reporters.
He further claimed that he wasn't the only one affected. "Even 10-15 others had similar huge sums deposited in their accounts," he alleged.
Links to Rs 560 Crore Hawala Scam Emerge
The ED notice served to Kohad included a list of 42 shell companies allegedly used in the hawala network. Investigations suggest these entities are connected to Mahesh Vaddi, the alleged kingpin of the Rs 560 crore hawala scam, arrested in 2017. Vaddi has been listed as a director in several of the companies, some of which are still active.
The companies are registered across multiple cities including Kolkata, Delhi, Pune and Secunderabad. Notably, six of them share the same Kolkata address - 840/2 Lake Town. The first company named in the ED notice, Padmapriya Stone Crushing Private Limited, is based in Vizag, which is Vaddi's hometown.
Life in Distress
Despite the colossal tax demand against his name, Kohad says he lives in poverty. Currently residing in a rented home in Multai, he describes his situation as hand-to-mouth. "If the tax demand is Rs 314 crore, imagine how much money was funneled through my account without my knowledge," he said.
With no clarity yet on how the deposits ended up in his name, Kohad remains in legal limbo - and financial ruin - as authorities dig deeper into what could be one of the country's more convoluted laundering rackets.
CAclubindia
