india

Updated: May 01, 2019 11:37 IST

Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) officials on Tuesday searched the residences and offices of industrialist and YSR Congress leader, Kanumuri Raghurama Krishnam Raju, in Hyderabad and in Andhra Pradesh’s West Godavari in connection with alleged default in loans of about Rs 947 crore taken from various financial institutions.

Two separate teams of CBI officials from Bengaluru and Chennai landed at Raju’s villa at Boulder Hills of Emaar Properties near Gachibowli in Hyderabad and at Bhimavaram in West Godavari district in the morning. CBI officials in New Delhi familiar with developments confirmed the raids.

Raju contested the ongoing Lok Sabha elections on a YSR Congress ticket from Narasapuram parliamentary constituency.

“Before the elections too, CBI officials had taken my statement. Now they have come again to record my statement [and question on company’s transactions]. There is nothing like searches or raids,” he said.

The YSRC leader said his company had taken bank loans to the tune of ₹600 crore but could not repay them as the power project being run by it was in deep losses. “We have applied for one-time settlement of the loan amount. I have complete faith in the law, which will take its own course,” he said.

IT RAIDS ON ‘LOTTERY KING’

Sleuths of the income tax department carried out simultaneous raids on over 70 business premises of Santiago Martin, known as the lottery king across the country on Tuesday. IT officials in Chennai aware of developments said Martin was taken into custody at Kolkata airport earlier in the day.

Martin, an impoverished labourer from Myanmar, established Martin Lottery Agencies in 1988. It is now a nationwide business of more than Rs 7,000 crore.