Government has struck off around 2(Point)24 lakh companies till date for remaining inactive for a period of two years and more and restrictions have been imposed on the operation of their bank accounts.<br/><br/>In a statement, Corporate Affairs Ministry said preliminary inquiries has revealed that 35 thousand companies deposited and withdrew over 17 thousand crore rupees from 58 thousand accounts post demonetization.<br/><br/>In one case, a company with a negative opening balance on 8th of November 2016, deposited and withdrew nearly 2500 crore rupees post-demonetization.<br/><br/>Apart from restrictions on bank accounts, action has also been taken to restrict sale and transfer of assets of these companies until they are restored.<br/><br/>The state governments have been advised to take necessary action in this regard by disallowing registration of such transactions.<br/><br/>Separately, action has also been taken to disqualify directors on the board of companies that has failed to file financial statements and annual returns for a continuous period of three financial years. Around 3.09 lakh directors have been affected by this action.<br/><br/>The Ministry said, in order to address the criminality angle, the SFIO has been authorized to arrest any person believed to be guilty of any fraud punishable under Prevention of Money Laundering Act.<br/><br/>A separate initiative is also underway to develop a state- of- the- art software to put in place an early warning system which will be housed in SFIO.