New Delhi: A Delhi court has denied bail to an alleged mastermind accused of operating over 200 shell companies to launder nearly Rs 150 crore and evade taxes, observing that, “tax evasion through the creation of fake firms adversely affect the economy of the country.”Holding the alleged Rs48 crore loss to the govt as a significant factor, additional sessions judge Virender Kharta said the accused’s role in running the shell firms “cannot be ignored”.Opposing the bail plea, prosecutor GC Soni had submitted that the accused, Raj Kumar Dixit, along with his accomplices, was operating 200-250 fake or shell firms opened in the names of poor and innocent persons. It was alleged that these firms generated a turnover of about Rs687 crore, causing an estimated loss of Rs48 crore to the govt in the form of GST.The court recorded that the accused was the “master mind” behind the racket through which black money was routed and converted into white money. It also accepted the prosecution’s apprehension that the accused could abscond if released on bail.Only nine victims were noted to have been examined so far by the investigating officer, while more than 200 others are yet to be traced and examined.
