Gold biscuits, cash seized in raid on Varma Jewellers

YAVATMAL: Gold biscuits and unaccounted gold and cash were seized from Ghatanji-based Varma Jewellers by a team of 15-member income tax officials from Yavatmal and Wardha during a raid conducted on Thursday. Important documents and lap-top were also seized from Shailesh Varma.
District income tax officer Dharmendra Singh said that the jeweller was under scanner after the robbery of gold biscuits.He, however, did not disclose details. Gold biscuits brought by Varma's servant Manoj Savarkar from Hyderabad were looted. Pandharkawda police had arrested six of the accused and recovered 26 gold biscuits of 100 gram each and ornaments worth Rs 55 lakh from the looters.
The jeweller had initially said in his complaint that 10 biscuits of 100 gram were looted from his employee after the looters pretended to be cops on duty. However, investigations revealed that 26 biscuits and other gold ornaments were looted. The jeweller later changed his earlier version and claimed that he had lost 26 gold biscuits.
Anantrao Madavi, a retired PSI and father of one of the accused Bhalchandra, had in an affidavit submitted in the Pandharkawda JMFC court alleged that the police seized 20 kg gold from the jewellers. But he did not mention it as there was no transparency in his deals, he alleged. He had also lodged a complaint of illicit trade Varma was allegedly indulging in and demanded a probe. Further investigations are in progress.