While the income-tax department has already concluded investigations, the special police establishment of the Madhya Pradesh Lokayukta is continuing its probe into the alleged amassing of wealth disproportionate to the known sources of income by suspended IAS couple Arvind and Tinoo Joshi.
In early 2010, I-T department sleuths had raided and seized `3 crores in cash from the Joshi couple’s residence here. Later in January this year, the final appraisal report was forwarded by the I-T department to the Lokayukta and the Madhya Pradesh government. The I-T department has seized the Joshi couple’s assets and now it is going through the assessment proceedings. The last date for finalizing the assessment order and issuing the tax demand to the Joshi couple is December 31 this year. January 31, 2012 will be deadline for the suspended IAS couple to respond to the tax demand or go in appeal. Thereafter, if not satisfied, the I-T department would be free to prosecute them.
Senior officers of the State General Administration Department are tightlipped and have chosen to maintain a stoic silence in this matter. When contacted, director-general of police (Lokayukta special police establishment) D.G. Kapdev told this newspaper that they are carrying out their investigations.
When his attention was drawn to the period when the Joshi couple was posted in Delhi and the possible violation of FEMA (Foreign Exchange Management Act) and PMLA (Prevention of Money Laundering Act) by them, he said: “obviously the investigations cannot proceed in a single straight line, Central agencies (like the Enforcement Directorate) are also bound to be involved in such investigations.”
Official sources have revealed on the basis of the I-T department’s appraisal report that the suspended IAS couple had purchased in different names 400 acres of land worth over `300 crores at Bhopal, Raisen, Sehore, Balaghat and also near the Kanha and Bandhavgarh tiger reserves in Madhya Pradesh. They had also purchased apartments in Guwahati, Delhi, and Bhopal. Mr Joshi had also reportedly invested `3 crores in shares and had been engaged in speculative trading in shares and future options. A large part of the investment was made by them when they were on deputation and posted in New Delhi. Due to this reason, I-T sleuths have emphasised the need for a thorough investigation into the actual source of the money invested by Mr Joshi when he was on deputation with the ministry of defence.
Mr Joshi was the acquisition manager as joint secretary, MoD, from 1999 to 2001 and was later the joint secretary (G/Air) in the MoD till 2004. A government of India source pointed out that Mr Joshi had close links with one of the promoters of Global Vectra Helicorp, who is also the chief promoter of the Vectra Group. One of the Vectra Group companies happens to be the agent for Eurocopters in India.
As joint secretary, MoD, Mr Joshi was involved in acquisition of land and many mega defence projects. He had also played a role in many acquisitions in which the Vectra Group was directly or indirectly involved.