Income tax raids in Tamil Nadu, Pondy yield 80 crore

At least 30 premises raided in Chennai, Puducherry; incriminating papers seized.

CHENNAI: More than Rs 80 crore were seized in massive searches conducted by the Income Tax (I-T) Department on 30 premises in Chennai and Puducherry on Friday.

Hitting out at media reports for spreading rumours that the raids were being jointly conducted by the CBI’s Anti-Corruption Bureau or any such agency in tandem with the I-T Department, a top official told Express it was one of the biggest raids conducted in the wake of intelligence gathered by the department. “The intelligence gathering was done by I-T officials. We searched 17 places in Tamil Nadu, including six to seven in Chennai and remaining in Kodaikanal. Similarly, 12 premises were raided in Puducherry and one in New Delhi.’’

The premises of the Mahatma Gandhi Medical College and Research Institute and its sister concern Rajiv Gandhi Engineering College at Kirumampakkam in Puducherry were raided.

Taking a cue from complaints that the college had collected several crores as capitation fees from students admitted for the MBBS and postgraduate courses, about 50 I-T officials under Deputy Commissioner of Taxes launched a raid on the Mahatma Gandhi college and simultaneously raided the research institute and the engineering college run by Sri Balaji Educational and Charitable Public Trust.

The raids are still on and a proper assessment will be in place only after the raids are over, added the official.

In Puducherry, the residences of Suryanarayana and Asha, both secretaries to the chairman of the group, were scrutinised. The residence of Jerald, PRO of engineering college,  was also raided. During the raid at the residence of Jerald at Ariyankuppam, large sums of unaccounted money were reportedly seized.

Several documents were also seized.

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The New Indian Express
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