Thiruvalla: The Income Tax (I-T) Department conducted raids at the various centres of the Believers Eastern Church and collected documents related to financial deals for further inspection.
The raids that had been going on for five days concluded on Monday. Though direct checks have been completed, detailed examination of the documents would continue and this would take about two months, the officers have informed the Church authorities.
The officers said that they have found details of irregular deals worth several crores of rupees. And, cash of Rs 15 crore, including banned currency notes, were recovered from various places, according to sources. Also, Rs 3.85 crore of currency notes were recovered from a place of worship in Delhi.
The raids were held at 66 centres in Kerala, Tamil Nadu, West Bengal, Karnataka, Punjab, Telangana and Chandigarh.
Checks were also held at some of the institutions that helped to route funds via hawala channels. Sale deeds and mobile phones of the main functionaries were also seized for checking.
The I-T department in a statement said it had found evidence that donations received from abroad for charity works were diverted to real estate deals. The department also suspects that though 30 Trusts are operating under the Church, several of them exist only on paper.
The licence, as per the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act, had not been renewed for the Believers Church, the officer said. Also, that there were legal hurdles in accepting donations from abroad.
Half-truths being peddled: Church
Church spokesperson Fr Sijo Panthappallil has said that ‘half-truths’ were being reported about the I-T department's checks at the institutions of the Believers Eastern Church.
"The inspection, similar to an audit, i taking place. We are fully cooperating with the inspection. If any flaws are pointed out, we would rectify those," he added.
“The Church is involved in several initiatives in various parts of India. Big projects are being implemented for children and leprosy patients. Documents of these projects are also being checked. Action will be taken based on the final report," he said, while exhorting people not to believe in the fake reports.
