"Congress Is No Way Connected With Businesses Of Dheeraj Sahu": Jairam Ramesh
The unaccounted cash seized by the Income Tax Department from the premises of Congress Rajya Sabha MP Dheeraj Sahu in Odisha and Jharkhand has reached Rs 300 crore, official sources said on Saturday. This is the highest ever black money seizure by any agency in a single operation, PTI reported, citing the sources.
The raid started on Wednesday.
Congress” General Secretary in charge of communication and Rajya Sabha MP, in the first official reaction from the party after its MP Dheeraj Sahu was found with more than 300 crore rupees in establishments to him, said the party has no connection to Mr. Sahu”s businesses.
“The Indian National Congress is in no way connected with the businesses of Dheeraj Sahu, MP. Only he can explain, and should explain, how huge amounts of cash have been reportedly unearthed by the income-tax authorities from his properties,” Mr Ramesh posted on X.
सांसद धीरज साहू के बिज़नेस से भारतीय राष्ट्रीय कांग्रेस का कोई लेना-देना नहीं है। सिर्फ़ वही बता सकते हैं, और उन्हें यह स्पष्ट करना भी चाहिए, कि कैसे आयकर अधिकारियों द्वारा कथित तौर पर उनके ठिकानों से इतनी बड़ी मात्रा में कैश बरामद किया जा रहा है।
The Indian National Congress is…
— Jairam Ramesh (@Jairam_Ramesh) December 9, 2023
News agency Press Trust of India reported that Income Tax department searches against Odisha-based Boudh Distillery Private Limited and entities linked to it found unaccounted cash amounting to around Rs 225 crore so far.
The ruling Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) in Jharkhand on Saturday accused the BJP of waging a political vendetta against their rivals with a case being fabricated. JMM general secretary and spokesperson Supriyo Bhattacharya also denied the reports that link Chief Minister Hemant Soren with the alleged cash recovery.
Jharkhand BJP chief Babulal Marandi had made the same allegation against Soren earlier.
“It is shocking the way the BJP operates these days. Different media houses have been quoting different numbers. The IT department has yet to come out with an official statement as the raid is still underway. But the Prime Minister, who holds a constitutional post, tweets a news report when Parliament is also in session, which is latched on by the national spokesperson and state president to make wild allegations. This is being done merely to manufacture a false political narrative against the opposition parties,” said Supriyo.
Criticizing Babulal Marandi, Supriyo said it seems the BJP leaders worked as “accountants” of Dheeraj Sahu.
