Kochi : In the land deal transacted by Syro Malabar sabha, the Ernakulam-Angamaly archdiocese must pay an additional fine of Rs 3.5 crore. The Income Tax department in its report stated there was massive tax evasion underlying the deal.
Meanwhile, the High Court is set to deliver its ruling on a petition submitted by Cardinal Mar George Alenchery challenging the Ernakulam Sessions Court order asking him to face trial in the case. The lower court had named Archbishop George Alenchery, the archdiocese’s former finance manager Fr. Joshi Puthuva and the land purchaser Saju Varghese as persons who must stand trial.
In the case, the church’s land was sold to pay off a Rs 58-lakh loan availed from South Indian Bank. However, the sale proceeds were used to purchase land at two places instead of loan repayment. Also, there is no clarity on how much money went into these controversial land purchases.
The archdiocese bought the lands keeping actual sums involved a secret. The middleman in the deal, Saju Varghese, had in fact effected a resale of the land after splitting it into two plots. The amounts as shown on record do not indicate the actual costs and there took place huge tax evasions in the deal, said Income Tax report.
The in-between sale was aimed for personal profiteering and money towards purchase was drawn from archdiocese funds, the report added.
