Tax raid uncovers Rs 150 cr flow for radical expansion near Nepal border

Lucknow: A confidential report by the Income Tax Department has triggered a major crackdown on illegal religious funding and unauthorised constructions along the Indo-Nepal border. The findings, sent to the Union Home Ministry earlier this month, indicate a disturbing pattern of radical Islamic expansion supported by untraceable funds allegedly used for religious conversions and the construction of mosques, madrasas, and shrines.

The probe, which began in February, focused on border districts including Balrampur, Bahraich, Shravasti, and Siddharthnagar. Acting on inputs about the circulation of demonetised Rs 2,000 notes, the Income Tax Department conducted raids that uncovered a complex network of fund transfers. Over Rs 150 crore was found to have been sent through thousands of small UPI transactions to accounts flagged as suspicious.

In one notable case, an account belonging to a Balrampur resident reportedly received nearly Rs 12 crore from a religious trust based in Tamil Nadu. Investigators suspect these funds were part of a larger operation aimed at altering the region’s demographic structure through illegal religious conversions and settlement activities.

Authorities say that over the past 15 years, villages in these border areas have seen a marked rise in Muslim population and a parallel decline in Hindu families. This demographic change, they suspect, is the result of an orchestrated strategy involving migration, funding, and construction of religious structures. The raids in key areas such as Raxaul, Rupaidih, Badhni, and Koilabasa have added to concerns over a coordinated effort to engineer long-term socio-religious changes in these sensitive regions.