Taxmen ‘inquire’ into banking transactions of Deccan Chronicle

The Income Tax department, on Tuesday, initiated ‘inquiries’ into the banking transactions of Deccan Chronicle Holdings Limited.

A team of IT sleuths, headed by senior officials, visited the DCHL office on Tuesday, and went through the transactions of the company. The probe came in the light of complaints lodged by different banks , which alleged that DCHL management had defaulted on payment of its dues.

Karur Vysya Bank and other banks had also approached the Debt Recovery Tribunal (DRT) in the past few months after the cheques issued to them bounced. Kotak Mahindra Bank also symbolically took possession of the DCHL’s printing press located at Kondapur for an alleged default of Rs.50 crore.

Andhra Bank, too, approached the court as it faced hardships in recovering Rs.200 crore it had reportedly given as loan to DCHL.

The court had served notices on the management to show reasons why the cheque was issued without keeping sufficient balance in the account.

The inquiry by the IT team continued well into the evening.

Though the IT officials preferred not to comment on the development, it is reliably learnt that the complaints lodged by some leading banks over DCHL’s ability to repay their loans had prompted the department to verify the accounts and related transactions.