IT Department Raids CAP Gold and Vasavi Group: Unveiling Suspected Tax Evasion

Hyderabad: The Income Tax Department conducted extensive searches on CAP Gold Private Limited, popularly known as Chanda Anjaiah Parameshwar (CAP), on Wednesday. CAP is one of India’s leading gold and silver bullion merchants. The raids were part of an investigation into suspected tax evasion in the last financial year’s income tax returns (ITRs).

Starting around 6 am, nearly 15 teams of officials, armed with previous ITRs and balance sheets, raided the CAP Gold headquarters in Secunderabad and the residences of its board of directors across Hyderabad, Warangal, and other locations.

Officials revealed that several directors of CAP Gold had also invested in real estate ventures. Consequently, simultaneous searches were conducted at the offices of Vasavi Group, a prominent real estate firm in Hyderabad, including its office in Banjara Hills.

According to sources, the residences of CAP Gold chairman Chanda Narsimha Rao, managing director Chanda Venkatesh, and directors Sreenivas Rao Chanda, Abhishek Chanda, Sowmya Chanda, and others were searched. CAP Gold, a bullion merchant, supplies gold in bulk to jewelry shops and merchants.

Investigators suspect that cash transactions may have been routed from CAP Gold to Vasavi Group, leading to discrepancies in ITR filings. Several CAP directors, including Sreenivasa Rao Chanda, Abhishek Chanda, and Sowmya Chanda, are also investors and directors in Vasavi Group companies.

During the searches, IT officials obtained detailed information on ITRs filed by CAP Gold and Vasavi Group, the purchase of gold stocks and supply to customers, forms of transactions, and balance sheets. The IT officials also collected details of Vasavi Group's investments in purchasing lands, constructing apartments, and the purchase of land by customers, along with payment modes from customers based on current account statements. Notably, Abhishek Chanda is the director for 15 companies, including Vasavi Group of companies.

The raids are expected to shed light on the financial practices of these companies and their compliance with tax laws. The IT Department is committed to ensuring transparency and accountability in the financial sector, particularly in high-value transactions involving bullion and real estate.