Chennai/ Vellore: A day after income tax (I-T) raids in Karnataka led to a national political storm, I-T sleuths on Saturday conducted searches at the premises of senior DMK leader Duraimurugan in neighbouring Tamil Nadu's Vellore district over suspected use of unaccounted money for electioneering and seized Rs 10 lakh of alleged "excess" cash. The TN raids have once again raised eyebrows and are being viewed by political observers with suspicion as the Election Commission of India's (EC's) Model Code of Conduct is currently being observed.
High drama was witnessed when DMK legal cell functionaries refused to allow teams of the tax department's election surveillance and monitoring and district static surveillance and flying squads to hold searches without a "warrant". Later, senior tax officials armed with search warrants conducted raids.
Searches have been conducted at Duraimurugan's residence, where some printouts with ward numbers written over them were found but the "main person," indicating assessee, has dismissed them as "junk" and further questioning is on, said a highly placed sources in tax investigation wing. About Rs 19 lakh cash was found. After allowing cash declared in election affidavit, an amount of Rs 10 lakh was "determined as excess" and seized, the source said.
"We did not conceal anything," said Duraimurugan, adding that all his family members are income tax assessees. He confirmed that Rs 10 lakh was seized and said it was common to have cash on hand.
Tax department sources said searches were carried out in the campus of a college run by the DMK's leader's family, including in the teaching and hostel blocks. The administrative block is "being searched", the sources added. A farmhouse said to be belonging to a close confidant was also searched.
The I-T department officials, along with personnel from the election flying squad, arrived late on Friday night at the residence of the DMK treasurer. I-T department sources earlier in the day indicated that searches were carried out to detect suspected tax evasion vis-a-vis use of unaccounted money for electioneering.
The DMK has fielded Duraimurugan's son D M Kathir Anand from the Vellore seat in the coming Lok Sabha polls. Duraimurugan alleged that the raids were a "conspiracy" by some political leaders who could not face them in the electoral arena.
"They (tax officials) have gone with the understanding that we have nothing (to hide)," he told reporters.