I-T raids on Hoskote MLA unearthed 'excess income' of Rs 120 crore

Recent raids by Income-Tax officials on the houses and offices of Congress MLA MTB Nagaraj (Hoskote) has resulted in the admission about additional income exceeding Rs 120 crore by him and members of his family.

According to sources in the I-T department, Rs 1.10 crore of unaccounted for cash was seized during the operation. Sources said the additional income was in the form of unaccounted for property investment and construction of commercial property, hospital and residence. The I-T sleuths found withdrawal of bogus unsecured loan to conceal the additional income to evade tax on properties received in joint development agreements (JDA), unexplained cash and cash deposits. There was also suppression of receipts pertaining to a convention hall and paying guest accommodation.

An amount exceeding Rs 70 crore of payments received by various independent landlords, where no capital gains are paid, was also identified. A claim of exempt income for several years exceeding Rs 125 crore, related to running special economic zone, was said to have been false. As many as 3,500 property documents were found, evidencing land ownership of 560 acres. It is learnt that in addition to cash, 10 kg gold was found during the search, sources of which are under investigation.