Taxmen raid offices of diamond merchants who hosted Narendra Modi in Mumbai

Taxmen raid offices of diamond merchants who hosted Narendra Modi in MumbaiThe income-tax (I-T) department on Thursday conducted raids at offices of a number of diamond merchants in Mumbai, just three days after the merchants hosted BJP's Prime Ministerial candidate Narendra Modi

The raid, interestingly, were in line with Modi's prediction. At a function at the Bandra Kurla complex in Mumbai, Modi had cautioned diamond merchants that they could receive notices from the I-T department for hosting him.

Raj Purohit, a BJP leader, alleged that all the raids and searches by the I-T officials were politically motivated. He pointed out that the eight of the ten diamond merchants, whose offices were raided by the taxmen, were among the people who hosted Modi's function in Mumbai.

Alleging political motives behinds the raids, Purohit said, "These raids are happening because the diamond merchants have hosted Modi.. We have nothing against the officers, they are just following orders, but their political masters are making them do all these things - that's condemnable."

However, the investigations wing of the I-T department said the searches were carried out to disentangle a web of what the department calls bogus purchase & sale bills. It added that the raids carried out in Mumbai and Surat just followed similar raids in Kolkata and Jaipur.