The cash of more than Rs 3.5 crore in scrapped Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes that disappeared from Dimapur on Tuesday after being flown in by a chartered flight resurfaced on Wednesday in an equally dramatic manner.
Nagaland police+ chief L L Doungel told TOI, "The money, seized by the CISF, was handed over to officials of the income tax department. They handed it over to the claimant, Naga businessman Renato Zhimomi after he produced an I-T exemption certificate."
Zhimomi - who is the son-in-law of Neiphiu Rio, the sole Lok Sabha member from the state - has been arrested. Rio backs the BJP government at the Centre.
Income tax and intelligence officials in the national capital suspect that the Rs 3.5 crore in scrapped currency notes seized from a chartered flight in Nagaland could be part of a big money laundering racket, with the masterminds exploiting tax exemptions for tribals in the northeast and non-existent security at smaller airports.
A probe by the I-T department revealed that some businessmen, including the Gurgaon-based owner of a printing and packaging firm, allegedly roped in Renato Zhimomi, who claimed the seized money after producing an I-T exemption certificate, and took advantage of the absence of security at a small airfield in Hisar to haul at least Rs 11 crore in outlawed denominations of 500 and 1,000 to Dimapur by a chartered plane. The money thus ferried was deposited into the account of Renato, the son-in-law of three-time Nagaland CM Neiphiu Rio, the sole representative in the Lok Sabha from the state who backs the BJP-led NDA at the Centre. Renato's father Khekiho Zhimomi served as a member of the Rajya Sabha from the Naga People's Front party.
Amato, who has been arrested, was supposed to transfer the money back into the account of the businessmen through RTGS.
I-T officials have already tracked another Rs 7 crore allegedly deposited by Renato in his Axis Bank account in Dimapur.
Sources in the I-T department said Renato had "confessed" to have ferried cash thrice from Hisar to Dimapur by the same plane on November 12, 14 and 21. Besides, tax officials have also questioned Anil Sood, the Gurgaon-based owner of a printing and packaging firm, in whose bank account Amato had been making transfers through RTGS after cash was deposited in his Dimapur account. The proprietor of the airline is also under the scanner, with the I-T department seeking to verify Amato's claim that the last cash shipment belonged to the former.
Besides highlighting the desperation of those with stashes of scrapped notes, the incident has rung alarm bells among authorities over the absence of security at the airfield belonging to Hisar Flying Club - something which the group capitalized on. Inquiries suggest that those involved in shipping cash faced no questions as they loaded their cargo onto the aircraft chartered from Air Car Airlines. "Today, this is a case of money laundering. Tomorrow, any terrorist can similarly fly from an unscheduled airfield to land at a scheduled commercial airport to wreak havoc," said an official source.