Raids on godman’s premises end after 5 days, Rs 800 cr undisclosed income found
CHENNAI: The raids across 40 premises of godman Kalki Bhagwan since Wednesday last, including his ashram in Chittoor in Andhra Pradesh and several places in Tamil Nadu, came to an end on Sunday night. Five days of searches resulted in detection of Rs 800 crore undisclosed income, seizure of Rs 44 crore cash, 90 kg gold, foreign currency worth Rs 20 crore and details of nearly 4,000 acres of land, sources said.
Income Tax officers said they have also found undisclosed investments made by those close to the godman in Dubai, Africa, British Virgin Islands, etc. The foreign investment is estimated to be at least around Rs 100 crore.
According to I-T officers, the search concluded by 11 pm on Sunday. They noted that Krishna, the godman’s son, was the key person in the ashram. “Krishna and his wife Preetha have not cooperated during the inquiry conducted by the taxmen. They refused to answer any questions and didn’t sign the statement,” an I-T officer noted.
He added that the undisclosed income possessed by the godman, his son and associates was pegged at more than Rs 800 crore, with the seized documents indicating the existence of large number of benami properties.
Vijay Kumar Naidu, who started his carreer as a clerk in LIC, declared himself as Kalki, the tenth avatar of Lord Vishnu. He christened himself as Kalki Bhagwan, with the promise of delivering instant nirvana to his disciples. He has a large number of devotees in India and abroad.