Telangana topped the list of all the poll-bound states in the country in seizures as authorities confiscated a mind-boggling amount of ₹659 crore till date.
Published Nov 21, 2023 | 1:13 PM ⚊ Updated Nov 21, 2023 | 1:14 PM
Congress leader and Chennur MLA Vivek Venkataswamy. (Sourced)
The Income Tax Department officials, on Tuesday, 21 November, searched the residences and offices of the Congress candidate in Chennur Assembly constituency, Vivek Venkataswamy, at Mancherial and Hyderabad, suspecting that cash meant for use in the elections was stashed there.
The I-T Department, which has intensified raids ahead of the 30 November Telangana Assembly elections, is trying to unearth unaccounted money in the wake of huge amounts of cash being seized while in transportation in the state.
Telangana topped the list of all the poll-bound states in the country in seizures by confiscating a mind-boggling amount of ₹659 crore to date.
The I-T sleuths are also conducting searches at the houses of Venkataswamy’s followers and relatives.
Recently, the police had frozen ₹8 crore transferred to the bank account of Vigilance Security Services Private Limited from Visaka Industries Private Limited owned by Vivek Venkataswamy Gaddam’s family. He is the non-executive, non-independent director-chairperson of the company.
The raid on Tuesday is understood to be a follow-up of the transfer of ₹8 crore from Visaka Industries. The I-T sleuths reportedly searched the premises of his residence in Somajiguda in Hyderabad for incriminating documents.
The I-T officials are also conducting searches at the residences of businessmen and contractors in various towns in Kumuram Bheem Asifabad district.
Interestingly, lending credence to the arguments of the Congress that the department was targeting its leaders, the I-T officials conducted searches at the offices and residences of Ponguleti Srinivasa Reddy, who is the Congress campaign committee co-chairman and party candidate for Palair Assembly segment, on 9 November.
A team of 15 officials arrived at multiple locations in the early hours and carried out searches.
Reacting sharply to the raids, Srinivasa Reddy said that the BJP was targeting him by using the I-T Department on the advice of the BRS.
However, the I-T officials, on 16 November, reportedly searched the residence of the followers of Nallamothu Bhaskara Rao, BRS candidate for the Miryalguda Assembly seat, in Ravinder Nagar and the old town in Nalgonda, as well as the owner of Mahendra Oil Mill and Rice Mill. The officials are understood to have seized incriminating documents in their searches.
I-T officials descended on the residences of businessmen in the Nalgonda district and Hyderabad in Telangana and carried out searches at the residences of rice mill owners and real estate businesses in Miryalaguda, Haliya, Nalgonda, and Hyderabad.
They also reportedly examined the account books of the companies and were trying to track the source of funds that had been invested in power and other infra companies.
However, Bhaskara Rao clarified that he did not have any financial dealings with any businessmen who were searched. He, however, said that he knew them as voters of his constituency.
Recently, the I-T sleuths conducted searches at the properties of Congress leaders Parijatha Narasimha Reddy and others, including a suspected benami property of a Telangana minister.
