KOCHI: The Income Tax (IT) department on Thursday carried out raids at over 20 places in and around Kothamangalam, including the residence of former minister T U Kuruvilla. The raids were held after the officers received complaints of tax evasion by various non-banking finance companies (NBFCs) and quarry firms.
The IT investigation unit from Kochi reached Kuruvilla’s house at around 10 am. The raid was conducted following a tip-off received by the department regarding investments made by the former minister at various NBFCs in Kothamangalam. The search continued until night.
Other than Kuruvilla’s residence, the sleuths searched the headquarters of KLM Group and affiliated Tiana Jewellery, both located at the KLM Tower in Kothamangalam. Later, the team searched the house of KLM Group chairman Shibu Thekkumpuram, who is a senior Kerala Congress leader. The inspection was also held at the houses of other directors and investors of the KLM Group, which is into gold and finance businesses. The department conducted a raid at the office of the KLM Group over tax evasion in 2015.
Similarly, raids were held at the offices of Reliant Group and Capital Finance in Kothamangalam and at the residences of the directors of these firms. There are also reports that the IT officials also raided real estate and quarry firms functioning in Kothamangalam.