Income Tax Dept Searches 100 Premises of VV Minerals

Companies that were searched are involved in mining, processing & export of beach sand minerals in “illegal manner”.

Searches were conducted at around 100 premises of the Tirunelveli-based mining company VV Minerals, which is owned by Vaikundarajan.

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The Income Tax department on Thursday, 25 October, conducted searches at around 100 premises of the Tirunelveli-based mining company VV Minerals, which is owned by Vaikundarajan, news agency ANI reported.

More than 130 officials carried out searches at the premises of at least four such mining and mineral export companies – VV Minerals, Beach Minerals, Industrial Mineral Company & Indian Ocean Garnets Company, in south Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh, ANI quoted I-T officials as saying.

According to PTI, the companies that were searched are involved in mining, processing and export of beach sand minerals in an alleged illegal manner that led the officials to probe tax evasion charges against them.

The alleged illegal profits earned through this, officials said, were subsequently ploughed for investments into other businesses of these groups like spinning mills, sugar mills, hotels, engineering colleges and some blue metal businesses.

Some overseas transactions of these companies, made in alleged violation of tax laws, are also under the scanner of the department and sleuths are looking for documents to substantiate these charges, officials told PTI.

(With inputs from ANI and PTI)