A news outlet says the income tax dept in Maharashtra believes that several cooperative banks in the state are involved in mega fixed deposit scam and a fraud through demand drafts in the mix. The dept has found out these banks laundering politicians’ unaccounted monies worth 10 thousand crore.
The dept has also unearthed a fraudulent pattern of these banks issuing DDs up to Rs 49,900 to avoid furnishing pan card details and flouting Know Your Customer (KYC) disclosures. As per RBI guidelines, demand draft of any amount more than Rs 50,000 is taxable under the income-tax head ‘income from other sources’.
The department suspects that such transactions are taking place from one city to another in connivance with top bank officials.
Sources say early this year, the RBI had directed all primary (urban) cooperative banks to set up a special committee for monitoring and following up cases of frauds of Rs 1 crore and above. In the notification, it said that there was a need for paying attention on monitoring frauds at the highest level, ensuring staff accountability, and reviewing the efficacy of remedial actions taken to prevent recurrence of frauds.
Top IT officials say all cooperative banks across the country would soon be probed for their illegal transactions.