Income tax notice to FirstCry founder, allegation of tax evasion of $50 million.

New Delhi: The difficulties of Supam Maheshwari, the founder of three unicorn companies of the country, including FirstCry.com, which sells online baby products, have increased. The Income Tax Department is probing allegations of tax evasion of $50 million (about Rs 413 crore) against him. This has been claimed in a Bloomberg report. Apart from Firstcry, Maheshwari is also the founder of Globalbees Brands Ltd and Xpressbees. The Income Tax Department has sent a notice to him asking why he has not paid tax of $50 million. Sources say that Maheshwari did not pay tax on equity transactions in FirstCry.

Also, at least six investors of FirstCry have been approached for questioning. These include private equity firm CrisCapital Management Company and Sunil Bharti Mittal’s family office. According to experts, Maheshwari is in talks with the tax department to settle the probe. Spokespersons for Maheshwari, ChrysCapital, the tax department and Mittal did not respond to emails seeking comment. FirstCry turned profitable in the financial year ended March 31, 2021. Prior to this, it had incurred losses for several years. The company is now preparing to launch an IPO.