Hyderabad: Taxmen Inspect 200 Places Over Inflated Tax Deduction Claims
To identify suspicious patterns, the department leveraged financial data from third-party sources, ground-level intelligence, and advanced AI tools.
Hyderabad: The income-tax (IT) department has conducted inspections at 200 locations across the country, including among individuals employed in the Information Technology (IT) sector with links to Telangana, over the submission of fake bills to claim tax deduction.
Although the raids were carried out in Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Delhi, Gujarat, Punjab, and Madhya Pradesh, it was reported that employees of several IT companies based in Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu — originally from Telangana and holding Aadhaar addresses in various parts of the state — had submitted ITRs with fake bills for education fees, medical expenses, and other categories to claim excessive deductions and refunds.
In a statement, IT officials said their analysis revealed rampant misuse of deductions under Sections 10(13A), 80GGC, 80E, 80D, 80EEB, 80G, 80GGA, and 80DDB. Exemptions had been claimed without valid justification. Employees of multinational corporations, public sector undertakings, government bodies, academic institutions, and entrepreneurs are among those implicated.
To identify suspicious patterns, the department leveraged financial data from third-party sources, ground-level intelligence, and advanced AI tools. The IT department said it will take stern action against fraudulent tax claims, including penalties and prosecution wherever applicable.
According to officials, 40,000 taxpayers have revised their returns over the past four months, voluntarily withdrawing false claims amounting to Rs.1,045 crore.
