Income Tax personnel on Thursday began raids at properties owned by Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee Working President A Revanth Reddy and his relatives, PTI reported. The Congress claimed that the searches were part of the ruling Telangana Rashtra Samiti-government’s “political vendetta” against the Opposition party.
Enforcement Directorate officials are also part of the raids, The Indian Express reported. Unidentified officials said the raids are part of an inquiry into the alleged misappropriation of funds in an infrastructure company run by Reddy’s brother. The personnel raided the Congress leader’s Jubilee Hills house and 15 other places, including his Kodangal home and properties owned by his brother and relatives.
Last week, the Congress working president told reporters that the Bharatiya Janata Party-led government had plans to harass him, The Hindu reported. He accused Telangana Director General of Police M Mahender Reddy of acting on the instructions of caretaker Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao.
Telanagana Pradesh Congress Committee President Uttam Kumar Reddy took to Twitter to condemn the raids. “The people will teach K Chandrashekar Rao a lesson for being hand in glove with the BJP and the central government,” he tweeted.
In 2015, the Anti-Corruption Bureau arrested Reddy for allegedly attempting to bribe a nominated MLA to vote in favour of the Telugu Desam Party candidate in the Legislative Council polls. Unidentified officials told The Indian Express that Thursday’s raids are part of the investigation to trace the source of the Rs 50 lakh cash that Reddy had at the time.
Earlier in September, the city police had asked the working president to meet them as part of their inquiry into alleged irregularities in a co-operative housing society case.
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