Rampur (UP): The Income Tax department raid on the Rampur residence of senior Samajwadi Party leader Azam Khan continued for a second day on Thursday. The department on Wednesday launched raids at over 30 locations in Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh as part of its tax evasion probe against Khan and people associated with him.
Additional Income Tax Director (Investigation) Dhruv Kumar, who reached Rampur in connection with the raids on Thursday, confirmed that proceedings are underway at Khan's residence. However, he refused to answer how long the investigation will continue and what has come to light so far. "The investigation is going on. We can't say anything right now," he said.
Kumar, who stayed at Khan's residence on the Jail Road for about an hour, avoided questions and said everyone will know when the investigation is over. An Income Tax Department team has been at Khan's Rampur residence since 7 am on Wednesday.
Official sources said the department has conducted raids in Rampur, Saharanpur, Lucknow, Ghaziabad and Meerut in Uttar Pradesh apart from some premises in neighbouring Madhya Pradesh. The action pertains to some trust organisations run by Khan and his family members.
In Ghaziabad, the Income Tax Department raided a residence in Rajnagar Colony on Wednesday. The house belongs to Ekta Kaushik, said to be close to Khan's family. An MP-MLA court here convicted Khan last year in a hate speech case and sentenced him to three years in prison. Following the sentencing, the former minister was disqualified as the Rampur MLA. He was later acquitted by a higher court, but his disqualification was not revoked due to his conviction in a separate case. (PTI)
