Tax evasion probe: I-T dept raids properties of Anurag Kashyap, Taapsee Pannu
Ashok Chavan, Priyanka Chaturvedi, Prashant Bhushan & Tejashwi Yadav call move an attempt to silence voices rising against the Centre
MUMBAI/NEW DELHI: The Income Tax Department on Wednesday raided premises linked to Bollywood actor Taapsee Pannu and filmmaker Anurag Kashyap as well as his partners who launched the now-dissolved production house Phantom Films, officials said.
According to a private news channel sources, they are being questioned by the officials in Pune.
The searches, part of a tax evasion probe against Phantom Films and carried out across 30 locations in Mumbai and Pune, also covered Reliance Entertainment group CEO Shibhasish Sarkar and some executives of celebrity and talent management company KWAN, they said. The raids began in the morning and were continuing till evening.
The action is part of an investigation against the production house, which was dissolved in 2018, and its the then promoters Kashyap, director-producer Vikramaditya Motwane, producer Vikas Bahl and producer-distributor Madhu Mantena.
Tax department sources said some inter-linked transactions between the entities searched are under the scanner of the department. The raids, they added, are aimed at gathering more evidence to further probe tax evasion allegations against them.
The business transactions of films made under the banner of Phantom Films are also being probed, the sources said.
The searches against Mantena are being carried out in the context of his links with KWAN, of which he is a co-promoter.
Both Kashyap and Pannu, who worked together in the 2018 film Manmarziyaan and are now collaborating in the upcoming film Dobaara, are known to be outspoken about their views on a range of issues.
Calling this an attempt to subvert voices rising against the Centre, Maharashtra Cabinet minister Ashok Chavan said: “Such raids have become very common nowadays as the BJP uses the central agencies to target people speaking up against their governments.” He added: “This happened to them as they are celebrities who voice their opinions regarding what is happening around the country.”
Reiterating the sentiments of the Maharashtrian leader, Rajya Sabha MP and deputy leader of the Shiv Sena, Priyanka Chaturvedi tweeted: “Hope the Income Tax department of our country, is saved from bonded slavery status soon. Same wishes for ED and CBI too.”
Lawyer and activist Prashant Bhushan wrote on the microblogging site: “Filmmaker Anurag Kashyap, Actor Taapsee Pannu Face
Income Tax Raids. BJP’S A team at work to harass, intimidate & silence those who don’t fall in line. India has never seen such malafide use of IT dept, ED, NIA, police etc.”
RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav, too, went on to criticize such raids and said: “BJP government has employed IT, CBI and ED to conduct raids on vocal and upright political rivals for their character assassination”.
Responding to a question at a press conference in Delhi, Union minister Prakash Javadekar rejected allegations that the raids against Kashyap and Pannu were linked to their comments, which are seen at times critical of the BJP.
“This is too much,” he said to the question. “Probe agencies undertake investigations based on credible information and the matter later goes to courts as well,” he added.