Robert Vadra, who is currently being investigated in a Benami property case, has claimed harassment by I-T Department and the Enforcement Directorate, alleging that he is being used as a ‘political pawn’.
He is Priyanka Gandhi Vadra’s husband, who is General Secretary of the Congress.
“When my family fights for farmer issues, all of this is to digress the topic and show me in a bad light,” claimed Vadra, as per ANI. He alleged the government was using him to ‘divert attention away from farm laws’ as ‘people want answers.’
Refuting claims of tax fraud, Vadra said over 23,000 documents were taken away from his office as part of the investigation against him.
“Every question posed by Enforcement Directorate (ED) and Income Tax department have been answered with evidence. I am willing to go to any agency for questioning as I haven’t done any kind of tax evasion,” Vadra said, as per news agency ANI.
The Income Tax Department officials arrived at Vadra’s office for the second day on Tuesday, 5 January to record his statement under the Benami Transactions (Prohibition) Act. He is currently out on anticipatory bail.
The team questioned Vadra for over nine hours on 4 January as well, which he claimed was a result of ‘vendetta politics’. They visited his residence after he cited COVID-19 restrictions on being asked to report at the tax authority’s office.
The team arrived around 2.45 pm on 5 January at Vadra’s Sukhdev Vihar residence to question him on his ‘business dealings and history’, reported IANS.
The department has been probing Vadra on charges of alleged possession of some undisclosed assets in the UK. The Enforcement Directorate (ED) too is investigating these charges, under the anti-money laundering law, against the businessman.
Vadra is being investigated in a case pertaining to alleged money laundering in the purchase of London-based property at 12, Bryanston Square, worth 1.9 million pounds. The ED has recorded his statements on multiple occasions since February 2019 about Vadra’s alleged assets and properties outside India, reported ANI.
In his Tuesday’s recorded statement, Vadra denied ownership of London properties and any assets outside India, reported ANI.
(With inputs from IANS and ANI)
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