New Delhi:
A team of excise officials were allegedly attacked by dogs let loose during a search operation at the residence of a director of a private company in Uttar Pradesh for alleged excise duty evasion of Rs 20 crore.
According to official sources one of the officials was injured after he was bitten by the dog.
An FIR has also been registered against the director for letting the dogs on the excise officials and hampering their work, they added.
Acting on an intelligence input, a team of Directorate General of Central Excise Intelligence (DGCEI) in Delhi conducted searches in the official and residential premises of directors of Trikoot Iron and Steel Casting Limited, Muzaffarnagar.
While the officers were trying to fend off the canines, the director concerned was allegedly trying to remove hard disc from a computer installed in his residence, the sources said.
Later, the situation was brought under the control with the help of additional police force and the hard disc was recovered after a thorough search.
The company was allegedly found to be evading excise duty by showing less sales and through other fraudulent means. The data was also being stored in computers installed in secret office being operated from kitchen and other rooms of the director's residence, the sources said.
These computers were connected with well concealed wires and select employees of the businessman were making entry of both accounted and unaccounted sales made by the factory on daily basis, they said.
The tax officials were also able to retrieve data from the hard discs of these computers which were well secured and password protected.
The officers also recovered other incriminating documents from the residential and other premises. The company made sales of 'saria' (rods) to the tune of Rs 100 crore during the last three months but showed sales of Rs 35 crore on papers, the sources claimed.
The director of the company has admitted to tax liability and deposited Rs one crore on the spot, they said, adding that the further investigation in the case was continuing.