Raigunj (West Bengal): On Wednesday morning, sleuths from the Income Tax Department carried out simultaneous raids on the residence, showroom, and office of Raiganj MLA Krishna Kalyani, as well as several other establishments affiliated with him.
The I-T officials entered Kalyani's house early in the morning and prevented him from leaving, during the course of the raids that continued for several hours. Additionally, the I-T officials confiscated the phones of everyone present on the premises where the raids were underway.
Pradeep Kalyani, the ward number 18 coordinator for the Trinamool Congress and Krishna Kalyani's brother, accused the I-T department of raiding the MLA's house without any rhyme or reason. “The actions were politically motivated and many people were confused about the reasons for the raid,” Pradeep said.
According to sources, the I-T department had previously issued notices to Krishna Kalyani's food and edible oil company over alleged financial irregularities in its dealings with two Kolkata-based television channels. Though it has not revealed the possible reasons behind the raid, it is believed the I-T department is investigating potential money laundering by the company.
Krishna Kalyani, who was formerly associated with the BJP, joined the Trinamool Congress and was appointed as the chairman of the party's public accounts committee. In the 2021 assembly election, he ran as a BJP candidate before defecting to the Trinamool Congress without resigning from the assembly.
The raids on Krishna Kalyani's properties come in the wake of the seizure of crores of rupees from the home of Arpita Mukherjee, a close aide of suspended Trinamool minister Partha Chatterjee. The minister has been accused of corruption, specifically taking bribes to facilitate teacher and staff recruitment in state-run schools while he was Education Minister in 2016. The Trinamool Congress has distanced itself from Chatterjee following the revelations, and he has been dismissed from all party and ministerial posts.
