I-T raids TD men, firms
Pothula granite units raided
Raids by Income-Tax (I-T) sleuths on Telugu Desam leaders and some private companies across the state on Friday created a political flutter.
Income-Tax officials conducted joint raids on the granite and seafood units belonging to Kandukur TD legislator Pothula Rama Rao in Praksam district.
It is learnt that around 200 officials divided into 19 teams with the help of Andhra Pradesh police had conducted raids at 28 different places in Hyderabad, Nellore, Prakasam, Guntur and Vijayawada.
Though there were initial reports that the offices of the Narayana educational institutions, owned by municipal administration minister P. Narayana were also raided, the minister later denied this and I-T officials too said no raids were conducted on Narayana institutions.
The raids have come at a time when the TD and Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu have been complaining that they are being targeted by the BJP government at the Centre because the TD walked out of the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance and also for questioning the actions of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Pothula Rama Rao was elected to the Assembly on a YSR Congress ticket, but switched over to the TD later. According to sources in the TD, I-T officials scanned the files and computer data at Southern Infra Aqua Processing Unit belonging to the legislator, at Bitragunta village in Jarugumalli mandal of Prakasam district.
I-T teams also inspected the records of Southern Granite Polishing at Cheruvukommupalem near Ongole and a granite factory in an industrial estate in Ongole.
Raids on the offices and factories of BMR Hatcheries and Feed, belonging to former TD legislator Beeda Masthan Rao in Nellore district continued on Friday. I-T officers did not allow anyone inside and refused to speak to the media.
In Vijayawada, I-T raids were conducted at the offices of the Hyderabad headquartered real estate company Southern Developers.
Raids by Income-Tax (I-T) sleuths on Telugu Desam leaders and some private companies across the state on Friday created a political flutter.
I-T officers also raided the offices of VS Logistics which repairs rail coaches and has offices in Guntur and Vijayawada.
Southern Developers, which has cashed in on the real estate boom in the new capital region, is said to be the benami firm of a key minister in Chief Minister Naidu’s cabinet.
TD circles are of the opinion that instead of targeting the party leaders directly, the I-T department is raiding the persons and firms indirectly linked to them so that eventually they can be booked.
In Visakhapatnam, I-T officials conducted raids on the offices of real-estate business firms NSR Housing Private Limited and Subhagruha, whose high profile owners are allegedly supporters of the TD government.
Two teams of the I-T department inspected the records in the administrative offices of the real-estate firms and seized some documents.
Sources said that the realestate firms raided have a connection with the ruling party and have been avoiding tax by indulging in irregularities.