According to news outlet PTI, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has filed a FIR against three employees of the Income Tax (I-T) department for aiding fraudulent Tax Deducted at Source (TDS) refunds that cost the department millions of dollars.
The three group C I-T employees exploited the senior officials' RSA authentication credentials to steal over 1.3 crore while they were stationed in Muzaffarnagar, Uttar Pradesh.
The department claims that an assessing officer noted the computation of reimbursements for assesses under section 154 of the I-T Act, which is how the scam was discovered.
By abusing the RSA tokens of the assessing officers, the accused officials were able to construct and confirm phoney TDS refunds that were payable to 11 assessors. They produced fictitious refunds to the tune of ₹ 1.39 crore from August 1, 2020, to August 25, 2021.
According to reports, the scam was carried out without using the ITBS but rather the outdated AST (Assessment Information System) (Income Tax business application system).
On the basis of the Joint Commissioner of Income Tax's complaint in Muzaffarnagar, the CBI has filed a case against the three. The investigation agency searched several places as a result of the complaint. The three group C officers, Abhay Kant, Rohit Kumar, and Saurabh Singh, as well as nine recipients, are the subjects of the investigation.
Out of the total sum syphoned off, "almost 35 lakh" was deposited back into government accounts by the accused officials as taxes on demand, while "22 lakh" was recovered by assessing officers through coercive measures against the beneficiaries, according to the I-T department.
"The total amount recovered so far, either by the staff members implicated in the fraud or by the assessing officers through the attachment of assessees' accounts, is 57.31 lakh rupees. The entire sum still owing, with accrued interest, is calculated to be 94.39 lakh, ""The department said that the complaint alleged.