IT Dept Searches Premises Of Real Estate Firm Accused Of 'Close Links' With TN CM's Family, DMK

The Income Tax searches are happening across multiple cities after the BJP's corruption allegations against the DMK and Tamil Nadu CM MK Stalin's family.

File Photo of Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin. The BJP accused his family and party of accumulating crores through corrupt means.

Source : PTI

The Income Tax sleuths on Monday began searches in more than 50 locations in connection with G Square Realtors, a private real estate firm, considered to have very close links with the ruling Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) in Tamil Nadu. The residence of Praveen, a cousin of Chief Minister MK Stalin's son-in-law Sabareesan, is also being searched, sources told ABP Nadu. The searches are happening across multiple cities such as Chennai, Trichy, Coimbatore, Karnataka's Hosur, Bangalore, Mysore, and Bellary, and also in Telangana.

Raids are taking place at DMK MLA Mohan and his son Karthik's residence (one of the shareholders in G Square) in Chennai's Anna Nagar, G Square Bala (another partner), Auditor Shanmugam's residence at Anna Nager, G Square offices at Chennai's Chetpat, Alwarpet, as well as Coimbatore and Trichy.

G Square has officially denied alleged links with the DMK saying that it has no connection with the first family of the ruling party of Tamil Nadu. Praveen Kumar, Communications Head, said: "We are running the business as per the law only."

In 2019 too, G Square was raided by IT officials and nothing major was found.

According to news agency ANI, the DMK cadre held a protest after the raid at the house of Anna Nagar DMK MLA MK Mohan's son.

#WATCH| Tamil Nadu: DMK cadre holds protest after Income Tax raids house of Anna Nagar DMK MLA MK Mohan's son, who is a shareholder of firm G Square pic.twitter.com/Sj3QFC6QBv

— ANI (@ANI) April 24, 2023

More information regarding the same is awaited. Recently, the Tamil Nadu BJP, in a press conference, alleged scams by the DMK through a campaign called "DMK files" wherein G square firm was also named.

DMK Received 'Kickbacks Of Rs 200 Crore': BJP

Earlier this month, Tamil Nadu BJP President Annamalai, at a press conference, alleged that the DMK received "kickbacks of Rs 200 crore" from an MNC through two shell firms and the sum was used by "TN Chief Minister M K Stalin as 2011 election fund for DMK". Annamalai also said that he would lodge a complaint with the CBI seeking a probe into the matter.

He released a 15-minute video clip "DMK Files (Part-1)" and said three other parts would be released. He said the videos will include details of all political parties. The video featured DMK ministers, leaders, and others related to ruling party leaders.

DMK leaders dismissed the allegation as “laughable”. They also said that legal action would be initiated against Annamalai for his claims. DMK leader Duraimurugan dismissed the allegations as a mere political stunt. DMK Organising Secretary R S Bharathi told reporters that Annamalai would now have to spend more time in courts than touring for the BJP.

Bharathi said his party was not afraid of the CBI and it had faced and disproved allegations in its long history.

BJP Delegation Meets Tamil Nadu Guv Demanding Audit Of State Finance Minister's Audio

The raids come after a delegation of Tamil Nadu BJP leaders met Governor RN Ravi on Sunday "seeking an independent forensic audit on the audio file of State Finance Minister P Thiaga Rajan exposing the ill-gotten money amounting to Rs 30,000 crores through corrupt means by CM MK Stalin's son Udhayanidhi Stalin and son-in-law Sabareesan."

In an official release, the Tamil Nadu BJP President K Annamalai asked the finance minister to record his audio clip so that truth can be ascertained. 

Earlier, BJP Rajya Sabha MP Syed Zafar claimed that Chief Minister MK Stalin’s son-in-law Sabareesan and his son Udhayanidhi Stalin made Rs 30,000 crores in a year and all of this has been looted from the common people.

According to news agency ANI, BJP’s Syed Zafar Islam said, “When the Finance Minister of Stalin talked to a journalist he revealed that Stalin’s son-in-law Sabareesan and his son Udhayanidhi Stalin made Rs. 30,000 crores in one year. And their main concern is how and where to hide the money.”

V Sabareesan has set up two companies in the UK and these so-called companies are nothing but the means of illegally routing the ill-gotten wealth, he alleged.

Syed Zafar further claimed, “This is unprecedented that they have made this kind of money in a year, all this has been looted from the common man. The money which was supposed to be spent on the common man has been looted by the Tamil Nadu chief minister and a few of his trusted friends.” 

(With Inputs By ABP Nadu)