The mystery surrounding seizure of Rs. 3.5 crore in old Rs. 500 and Rs.1,000 notes, transported by a chartered plane from Hisar in Haryana to Dimapur in Nagaland, deepened on Wednesday with reports emerging that the plane may have undertaken multiple trips after the demonetisation announcement on November 8.
Suspecting that small airports are being used by chartered planes to transport huge sums, an alert has been sounded.
The cash was seized by the Central Industrial Security Force on an intelligence tip-off and handed over to Income-Tax Department officials in Dimapur. But, a senior Nagaland police officer says, the officials released the amount to a local Naga claimant after he produced an income-tax exemption certificate.
Though the officer did not disclose the claimant’s identity, he is said to be a close relative of an MP.
Businessman’s claim
The chartered plane had taken off from a Hisar flying club, with a Bihar-based businessman named Amarjit Kumar Singh and a woman on board. After the cash seizure, the plane was redirected to the national capital. During questioning by the CISF, the businessman claimed that the money had been sent on the instructions of some Delhi-based influential person.
Investigations have been launched to ascertain the source of the cash and its actual destination.
