HYDERABAD: Income Tax sleuths on Thursday conducted searches at as many as 20 offices and properties of city-based Ravi Foods Private Limited and their promoters on suspicion of alleged tax evasion. The company is promoted by Ravinder Kumar Agarwal, Rajender Kumar Agarwal and Kedarnath Agarwal.
Searches were also conducted on several real estate companies, partnering with Ravi Foods, including DSA Builders and Constructions, which was initially promoted by former minister and TDP politburo member T Devender Goud’s son T Veerender Goud.
Veerender Goud, who will be contesting from Uppal on TDP ticket in the December 7 Assembly elections, and his two siblings were directors of these companies, but quit the company recently.
Ravi Foods, under the brand name Dukes is into manufacturing biscuits and confectioneries.
According to IT officials, searches were conducted at the residences of the promoters of Ravi Foods at Jubilee Hills. Along with Ravi Foods, searches were also conducted at Maddi Narsaiah, director of Shanta Sriram Constructions and a close associate of a TRS top leader. It is learnt that the sleuths reportedly scrutinised several records and documents of the company.
Ravi Foods was floated in late 90s and it set up a plant at Katedan on the city outskirts. The company promoters have also acquired a vast land at Kothur in Mahbubnagar district. Recently, the company has announced a `250 crore business expansion plan.
Veerender Goud, who lost to TRS’ Konda Vishweshwar Reddy in the 2014 elections in the Chevella Lok Sabha constituency, is a graduated from a US university.
Another IT searches at the residents and properties of persons associated with the TDP and its leaders ahead of the Assembly elections has raised many questions in the political circles.
All the searches by the I-T Department in the recent past in the two Telugu states targeted politicians or businessmen associated with Telugu Desam Party leaders, including Me,ber of Parliament CM Ramesh.