Income tax investigators, who arrived at Azam Khan’s residence on Jail Road in Rampur, Uttar Pradesh, at 7 am on Wednesday, concluded their search by Friday evening.
Rampur, Uttar Pradesh: The Income Tax department suspects that senior Samajwadi Party leader Azam Khan may have evaded taxes exceeding ₹800 crore. This suspicion arose after the department conducted a three-day raid on him and individuals associated with him, according to official sources on Friday.
The income tax authorities, who commenced their operation at Khan’s residence on Jail Road in Rampur, Uttar Pradesh, at 7 am on Wednesday, wrapped up their search on Friday evening.
Following the departure of officials from his residence at around 7 pm on Friday, Mr. Khan emerged and acknowledged, “It was an Income Tax department raid. They stayed here for three days, conducted searches, and posed questions.” He declined to respond to further inquiries.
On September 13, the Income Tax department executed raids at more than 30 locations in Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh as part of a tax evasion investigation against Mr. Khan.
Official sources reported that the raids took place in several cities, including Rampur, Saharanpur, Lucknow, Ghaziabad, and Meerut in Uttar Pradesh, as well as some properties in neighboring Madhya Pradesh.
In Ghaziabad, the Income Tax department conducted a raid at a residence in Rajnagar Colony on Wednesday, which is reportedly associated with Azam Khan’s family through Ekta Kaushik.
The Income Tax probe is connected to certain trusts managed by Khan and his family members, as per the sources.
The scope of the Income Tax department’s investigation expanded as investigators reached the Public Works Department, the district panchayat office, and Muhammad Ali Jauhar University, which is headed by Mr. Khan, according to officials.
Officials indicated that government expenditure records are under scrutiny due to suspicions of tax evasion exceeding ₹800 crore by the politician.
The raids prompted a strong reaction from the Samajwadi Party, which pledged support to Khan and accused the BJP government of “dictatorship” and “misuse of central agencies.”
“Azam Khan saheb is the voice of truth. He laid the foundation for a better future for children and established a university for education,” the party stated in a Hindi post following the raids on Wednesday. “Khan has always battled against communal forces. We all stand united with his voice,” it added.
In response to allegations of central agencies being misused, BJP leader and Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya asserted that these agencies were well within their rights to take action to make “Bharat corruption-free.”
Last year, Khan was convicted in a hate speech case stemming from remarks made at a public meeting in Khatanagaria village of the Milak Kotwali area in 2019. He was sentenced to three years of imprisonment, leading to his disqualification as an MLA from Rampur. Subsequently, he was acquitted by a higher court, but his disqualification remained in place due to his conviction in a separate case.
