The Income Tax department has conducted searches in various states, including Gujarat and Maharashtra, on the premises of pulses traders, the government said today.
"Evidence of tax evasion and other violations of the I-T Act, 1961 were recovered during such actions," Minister of State for Finance Santosh Kumar Gangwar said in a written reply in the Lok Sabha.
He said the tax department had conducted searches and surveys at various premises of assessees engaged in the business of pulses.
Such premises were located in various states, including Maharashtra, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, and Delhi.
With pulses prices soaring up to Rs 200 per kg, government had decided to crack down on hoarders. Pulses inflation has remained in double digits since January 2015 and stood at 26.61 per cent in June.
In a separate reply, Minister of State for Finance Arjun Ram Meghwal said the government has undertaken a number of measures to curb inflation, in particular food inflation.
The steps include increased allocation of Rs 900 crore for price stabilisation fund in Budget 2016-17 to check volatility of prices of essential commodities, issuing advisory to states to take strict action against hoarding and black marketing.
