Garhwal Post Bureau
Dehradun, 12 Nov: In a major operation early this morning, the Income Tax Department has conducted extensive raids on the premises of several prominent builders and a liquor trader in the state capital. The action, carried out by a special team from Delhi, targeted the establishments of well-known builders Kamal Arora, Inder Khatri and Rakesh Batra, as well as those of Ramesh Batra, Chairman of Kasiga School, and liquor trader Pradeep Walia, claim the sources.
According to information received, the searches were launched following the detection of undisclosed transactions running into crores of rupees. Investigations are being conducted simultaneously at multiple locations in the city, including MKP Road, Dwarka Store and Rajpur Road. Officials said the action aims to trace unaccounted income, suspected benami properties and financial transactions routed through shell firms.
While raids on builders by Income Tax and Enforcement Directorate (ED) officials have become a regular occurrence in Uttarakhand, similar operations against liquor traders remain relatively rare.
It may be recalled that, in recent months, several major builders across Uttarakhand have come under the scanner of central agencies. In October this year, the ED had raided properties of real estate developer Rajeev Jain in Dehradun and Delhi in connection with alleged financial irregularities and money laundering. Earlier this year, properties linked to former Cabinet Minister Harak Singh Rawat and his family were attached under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act. In another case, the Income Tax Department conducted raids on multiple builders in Haridwar and Rishikesh following reports of large-scale evasion in land deals and property registrations.
The officials claim that the current Dehradun raids are part of a larger drive to unearth undisclosed income and irregularities in property transactions. Preliminary findings suggest that several shell companies had been used to route funds and acquire high-value real estate assets. Bank accounts, balance sheets and property documents are being scrutinised to determine the actual extent of tax evasion.
Observers note that Uttarakhand’s real estate sector is being viewed as a hotspot for benami transactions, inflated land valuations and cash-based deals, particularly in fast-developing areas such as Dehradun, Haridwar, Rishikesh and Haldwani. The ongoing crackdown is being seen as part of a broader attempt by the Centre to tighten financial transparency and curb the circulation of unaccounted money.
Officials involved in the operation maintained that the action is purely evidence-driven, based on concrete intelligence inputs and audit trails.
