Cash Haul Linked To Cong MP Dhiraj Sahu In Odisha & Jharkhand Crosses ₹ 350 Cr, Counting Still On

The cash seizure in the income-tax department's searches against an Odisha-based distillery company, owned by a Congress MP's family, has been calculated at ₹ 351 crore after five days of counting and is the "highest-ever" haul in a single action by any probe agency in the country, official sources said on Sunday. The premises of the Congress Rajya Sabha MP from Jharkhand, Dhiraj Prasad Sahu, in Ranchi and other places, were also covered during the searches by the department. The company and the member of Parliament did not respond to PTI's queries regarding the action being carried out against them. The marathon raids against Boudh Distillery Private Limited, its promoters and others entered the fifth day on Sunday. The raids were launched on December 6 by the taxman on charges of tax evasion and "off-the-book" transactions. The sources say that ₹ 351 crore cash has been counted and the process has ended. The counting involved nine teams of about 80 people from the tax department and various banks, working in shifts in a 24x7 cycle.