Income Tax Department Ambala — comprising nearly 50 members led by Deepika Mohan, Joint Commissioner, IT, Ambala, accompanied by police force — conducted surprise raids on five firms. The firm included Kapil Sarees, Chhabra Sons Jewelers, Naresh Footwears, Naresh Udyog in new wholesale cloth market near Agarsen Chowk and Ghunght Palace Ambala City on January 23 before noon. The probe was still continuing till filing of the report.

Panic spread among wholesale cloth merchants and jewellers in wholesale cloth market after seeing number of vehicles and police. Most of the showrooms closed their shutters. All premises were sealed by the visiting team and customers inside the showrooms were asked to leave the place.

Income Tax officer Santosh Yadav told The Financial World that all accounts books as well as records of all firms were taken by the visiting IT team to verify embezzlement made by the firms during demonetization declared by the government in which the firms had transferred black money in the accounts of their employees.

According to Yadav, after 34 hours search in accounts of two firms Kapil Sarees and Naresh Footwears the owner of firms have surrendered amount worth rs 1.20 crore. The survey of the remaining three firms is still going on the third day on January 25. These firms are likely to surrender a total amount worth Rs 4 crore.

According to sources, Income Tax Department Ambala had conducted raids in these five firms earlier also during the year 2013-14 when Rs 8 crore worth of black money was surrendered by the owners of theses firms.

IT officer confirmed that the survey of three firms would continue till January 25 night.