Hyderabad (The Hawk): Thursday marked the third straight day that the Telangana labour and employment minister Malla Reddy's homes were searched by the Income Tax department.
Searches were being conducted simultaneously at Malla Reddy University, medical and dental schools, and the home of the minister's brother Praveen Reddy.
The residences of Malla Reddy, his sons, and his son-in-law were thoroughly searched by the IT detectives. Additionally, searches were conducted at the home of Trishul Reddy, the director of the Malla Reddy Engineering College and a different relative of Malla Reddy.
Since Tuesday morning, up to 65 teams, reportedly made up of more than 200 IT officials, have been conducting searches at the institutions managed by the Malla Reddy group as well as the homes and offices of the minister and his family members in a number of locations throughout Hyderabad and the Medchal Malkajgiri district.
Late Wednesday night searches were fraught with drama. The minister complained about the alleged haughtiness of the CRPF men and IT staff.
The minister and the IT staff each reported one another to the police. Bhadra Reddy, the younger son of Malla Reddy, reported his brother Mahender Reddy's assault and coercion to the Bowenpalli police station.
The same police station has received a complaint from an IT department official as well. He claimed that Malla Reddy got into a fight with IT staff members and stole their laptop, phone, and documents.
Later, the laptop was discovered close to the police station. It is claimed that Malla Reddy's supporters dropped it there.
According to reports, the last three days' worth of searches resulted in the discovery of certain crucial papers and the seizure of Rs 8 crore in undeclared cash.
Several of Malla Reddy's institutions allegedly have tax cheating going on, according to sources. Additionally, there are claims that seats from the convener quota in the Malla Reddy engineering, pharmacy, and medical institutions were improperly distributed. The bank accounts utilised for these seats' transactions were under investigation by the IT staff.
According to reports, Malla Reddy, who owns Malla Reddy University and oversees a number of professional colleges, has also invested in shopping centres, gas stations, and a number of different pieces of land.
(Inputs from Agencies)