IT raids on Hyderabad gold refineries Yashora and DP Gold
HYDERABAD: Income Tax (I-T) authorities on Thursday conducted searches on two major gold refineries—Yashora and DP Gold—in Hyderabad as part of a crackdown on alleged large-scale tax evasion and laundering of unaccounted cash in Telangana and Andhra Pradesh.
Investigators said that DP Gold operated at the centre of an operation where individuals allegedly converted untaxed money into gold through small-ticket trades. One method involved cutting imported gold biscuits into 20-gram pieces, wrapping them in paper and selling them for less than ₹2 lakh each. This kept transactions below the Permanent Account Number (PAN) reporting threshold, enabling traders and buyers to move illicit cash into seemingly legitimate purchases without drawing scrutiny.
Suspected circular transactions
Officials added that firms in unrelated sectors, including pharmaceuticals, also sold bullion, raising suspicion of circular transactions aimed at recycling money. During the raids, authorities seized more than ₹1 crore in cash and recovered records that investigators believe pointed to artificial billing trails created to disguise the flow of funds.
The I-T department is probing how networks linked to the refineries allegedly created complex money trails to mask the conversion of unaccounted cash into bullion. Searches extended to multiple offices, warehouses and residences linked to both Yashora and DP Gold.
Firms under spotlight
Yashora is part of the Yash Group, which has nearly two decades of presence in industries ranging from appliances and IT to healthcare and education. The group recently ventured into bullion refining, projecting itself as a resource for the gold markets of Hyderabad and the Telugu states.
DP Gold, incorporated in 2009 in Nellore by Dilip Kumar Jain, operates under the name DP Bullions. The company runs both online platforms, such as “dP Spot” for gold booking, and physical branches in Hyderabad, Vijayawada, Visakhapatnam and Chennai.
Authorities said the action is part of a broader enforcement drive ahead of the festive season, when gold trade typically surges.
