According to the official quoted above, the I-T department authorities seized ₹2 crore in hard cash from the residence of Trishul Reddy and another ₹2.80 crore from the residence of Raghunath Reddy at Jeedimetla.
Sleuths of the Income Tax department on Tuesday conducted searches at the residences and offices of Telangana labour minister Ch Malla Reddy, his relatives and close aides in different parts of Hyderabad and its outskirts.
The raids, which began early in the morning, continued till late in the evening. An I-T official privy to the information said the authorities had seized ₹4.80 crore of unaccounted cash from Reddy’s close aides looking after his business activities.
As many as 50 teams of the I-T department launched simultaneous raids on the residences of the minister, his son Mahender Reddy, son-in-law Marri Rajasekhar Reddy, another relative Praveen Reddy and close aides — Trishul Reddy, Raghunath Reddy and Santosh Reddy — in Hyderabad and its outskirts falling under Medchal Malkajgiri district.
The raids were also conducted in the offices of 14 educational institutions belonging to the minister including a medical college, engineering college and a private university on the outskirts of Hyderabad, besides the real estate offices of Rajasekhar Reddy, who had contested the last Lok Sabha elections on the Telangana Rashtra Samithi ticket from Malkajgiri parliamentary constituency.
According to the official quoted above, the I-T department authorities seized ₹2 crore in hard cash from the residence of Trishul Reddy and another ₹2.80 crore from the residence of Raghunath Reddy at Jeedimetla.
The officials also raided the house of Santosh Reddy at Kompally, but the latter did not open the door. After waiting for three hours, the I-T department authorities broke open the door with the help of Central Reserve Police Force personnel.
“The authorities are trying to break open the electronic lockers in the residence of Santosh Reddy, who looks after the personal finances of Malla Reddy,” the official said.
Meanwhile, the TRS condemned the I-T raids on the minister’s residences and offices. “This is nothing but witch-hunt by the Central government. We have anticipated such raids long ago and we are not surprised if more such raids are conducted in the coming days. But the party is not scared with such coercive tactics by the Centre,” TRS spokesman and MLC Palal Rajeshwar Reddy said.
The TRS workers gathered in large numbers outside the residence of Malla Reddy at Kompally and raised slogans against the Central government.
