The Income Tax Department searched and surveyed Educomp, the Gurgaon-based e-learning company on Thursday. The action is likely to continue till Friday. The company's stock tanked to a 52-week low on THE BSE.
Confirming the development, a spokesperson of the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) said, “Three teams from the Income Tax Department searched three premises, including the residence of company's directors. While 11 teams surveyed 11 office premises based in Gurgaon, Delhi and Faridabad.”
The spokesperson refused to give details about the reason for the action. It is believed that the IT Department had suspicions over some accounting practices and remittances that the company had received.
The company, however, termed the action as routine. In a statement, it said. “The company is given to understand that this is a routine verification of records. We have full faith in the departmental procedural diligence and are cooperating fully with the authorities.”
The statement did not seem to pacify the market, though. Educomp's share on BSE slipped to Rs 221 during trading hour, a 52-week low, before recovering to close at Rs 234.35. Even with this recovery, the stock lost nearly 9 per cent over its previous closing.