Bengaluru: Caught in the Bathroom: Rs 5.7 crore with 32kg Gold

Bengaluru, 11 Dec 2016 (Bangalore Mirror): Corrupt businessmen led by a Sandalwood comedian’s son-in-law have put Challakere in Chitradurga district on India’s map; Rs 5.7 crore and 32 kg gold in bullion and jewellery were seized from — wait for it — a secret chamber in the bathroom of a newly constructed house.

 

 

New notes seem to be everywhere, except in ATMs. On Friday, income-tax officials found Rs 5.7 crore unaccounted cash – around Rs 3.5 crore of it in new Rs 2,000 notes – not in a vault, but in a secret chamber of the bathroom. Interestingly, the house in Challakere (Chitradurga district) from where the cash was found was built recently, and specifically for hiding unaccounted money, I-T officials said. The other booty that the I-T officials found includes 28 kg of bullion (worth around Rs 85 lakh), 4 kg of jewellery (worth around Rs 12 lakh).

 

The raids were carried out in Hubballi and Chitradurga after the taxman got a tip-off about the “treasure chest” of businessman-turned-politician KC Veerendra and his business associates KC Nagaraj, KC Thippe Swamy and VR Habeeb. Veerendra, son-in-law of famous Sandalwood comedian Doddanna, runs a casino each in Goa and Malaysia and identifies himself as JD(S) man. Apart from casinos, Veerendra’s family also owns a few garment factories in Hubballi. Veerendra and his associates are either active partners in his business or deal in gold and bullion. One of his associates was actively involved in converting old notes and accumulating bullion using old currency.

 

In fact, a couple of months back, former prime minister HD Deve Gowda and ex-Congress minister Ambareesh had attended the house-warming ceremony of the very same house where cash and gold was found on Friday.

 

The Panaji Directorate of the Director General of Income-Tax, Karnataka and Goa conducted the raids in seven locations in Chitradurga and another seven places in Hubballi. “The houses of KC Veerendra, KC Thippe Swamy and KC Nagaraju at Challakere at Chitradurga were raided. The bathroom lockers were found at a newly inaugurated house which is in the name of KC Nagaraju, relative of main person KC Veerendra. We had clear information about this and while searching we found some mechanism in the wall and also a hidden switch beside the bathroom window.

 

The button was pressed using a screw-driver and a knock on the edge of the bathroom wall tile opened the secret locker.

 

“The house was designed in such a manner as to keep illegal wealth in these hidden chambers. We were shocked to see the amount of gold, cash in new notes and old notes of Rs 100 and Rs 20,” an income-tax official told Bangalore Mirror on the condition of anonymity. At least 20 income-tax teams carried out the simultaneous operations in Hubballi and Chitradurga.

 

Police sources said Veere­ndra indulges in betting on cricket matches too. Cases have been booked against him in Chitradurga in the past.