Income Tax raids on Akhilesh Yadav’s aides
Separate raids being conducted at Mau, Mainpuri
New Delhi, Dec. 18 (Delhi Crown): The Income Tax Department has been carrying of several raids since Saturday morning in the houses of several persons known to be close to Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav.
According to media reports, the I-T sleuths conducted raids at the house of Samajwadi Party (SP) national secretary and spokesperson Rajeev Rai’s residence in Uttar Pradesh’s Mau.
Similar raids were conducted at the premises of RCL Industries Private Limited’s owner Manoj Yadav in Mainpuri and Jainendra Yadav in Lucknow. Both men are said to be close to Akhilesh Yadav.
The I-T raids assume significance even as political momentum gains in the state ahead of early next year’s Assembly polls.
In Mainpuri, the I-T officials arrived in a convoy of 12 vehicles and cordoned off Manoj Yadav’s residence. “No person is allowed to enter or leave the house. Officials are conducting searches and questioning people,” added the media reports.
In a similar fashion, a team of I-T officials from Varanasi arrived in Mau early on Saturday morning and began searches at Rajeev Rai’s home in Sahadatpura area of Mau at around 7 a.m. The SP leader and his family have been confined inside the house for the last two hours.
On learning of the raids, SP workers gathered outside Rai’s residence and raised an outcry. Police have been posted to maintain law and order and keep the situation under control.
It is believed that the I-T raids on Rajeev Rai are on suspicion of tax evasion, said media reports.