New Delhi: Continuing its crackdown on the illegal foreign car import racket, the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) has seized 28 foreign cars belonging to the Jaypee Group in the past 48 hours on charges of tax evasion amounting to crores of rupees.
The cars were seized from the Golf Course Club owned by the group in Greater Noida. All of the cars seized are reported to be Toyota Camrys.
Jaypee group Managing Director Manoj Gaur claimed that the import of cars was fully in accordance with the law and fulfilled eligibility criteria.
He said Jaypee Hotels, a regular foreign exchange earner, had imported the cars more than six months ago for the proposed car rental business.
However, the rental business was deferred as the group sought to concentrate on hotel business which was witnessing a boom, Gaur said.
"We have not used the cars till now for rental business. Cars belong to Jaypee Hotels. We will cooperate with authorities," he added.
Toyota Camry is available in the Indian market as well and is priced somwhere near Rs 20 lakh. But if bought under the EPC scheme, the same car can be imported at 5 per cent customs duty, which brings down the cost to just about Rs 8 lakhs.
The EPC scheme is meant for hotelliers and the hospitality industry and persons and entities availing of the scheme have to justify the import of such car by showing foreign earnings from it.
In case of Jaypee Group, it however failed to do so. According to the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence, all of the cars seized were used by the directors of the Jaypee Group.
In a foreign car racket busted last year, the DRI had unearthed a scam in which one person had imported 56 cars and sold them to a gamut of influencial people, including politicians, sons of politicians, former chief ministers and several prominent industrialists.
The DRI sources said a case had been registered and investigation was on.
(With PTI inputs)
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