Fifty bank officials, 40 counting machines, and five days of tireless counting have culminated in a staggering outcome: Rs 353.5 crore cash seizure from an Odisha-based distillery owned by a Congress MP’s family. This unprecedented haul marks the largest single seizure ever made by any investigative agency in India, shattering all the previous records.

Premises linked to Congress Rajya Sabha MP from Jharkhand, Dhiraj Prasad Sahu, in Ranchi and other places, were covered during the searches by the income tax department. 

In Odisha, counting of the cash is almost complete, income tax officials said. Balangir district witnessed the most significant recovery, with approximately Rs 305 crore unearthed. Sambalpur and Titlagarh followed with Rs 37.5 crore and Rs 11 crore respectively.

The Income Tax department will be depositing all cash seized in recent raids at the main branch of State Bank of India (SBI) in Balangir today. The SBI regional manager has confirmed that the bank will continue to operate normally for the public during this process.

SBI regional manager, Bhagat Behera, offered an update on the ongoing count of cash seized in. He revealed that the teams have processed 140 out of the 176 bags, with the remaining 36 scheduled for counting today.

“We received 176 bags and 140 of them have been counted, the rest will be counted today. Officials from 3 banks are involved in the counting process, and 50 of our officials are involved. About 40 (currency counting) machines were brought here, 25 are in use and 15 are kept as backup,” he said, as quoted by news agency ANI. 

Yesterday, the income tax department continued its raid on Boudh Distilleries Private Limited, expanding its scope to include Baldev Sahu Infra Pvt Ltd, a company allegedly linked to Mr Sahu’s family. 

The department suspects that the massive cache of cash unearthed during raids on Boudh Distilleries and associated entities represents unaccounted income generated from the sale of country liquor.  

BJP Steps Up Attack

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) launched a powerful counter-offensive on Sunday, aiming at the Congress and other opposition parties. Union Home Minister Amit Shah declared that their prior accusations of the government misusing investigative agencies are now exposed as mere “propaganda,” driven by their fear of being held accountable for their alleged corruption.

While the Congress has distanced itself from Mr Sahu, Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah questioned why no searches were conducted against leaders of the BJP.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday assured the public that “looted money” would be returned. The PM shared a Hindi newspaper report showing the mountains of cash recovered by the income tax department.

देशवासी इन नोटों के ढेर को देखें और फिर इनके नेताओं के ईमानदारी के ‘भाषणों’ को सुनें… 😂😂😂

जनता से जो लूटा है, उसकी पाई-पाई लौटानी पड़ेगी, यह मोदी की गारंटी है।

❌❌❌💵 💵 💵❌❌❌ pic.twitter.com/O2pEA4QTOj

— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) December 8, 2023

“The countrymen should look at the pile of these notes and then listen to the honest speeches’ of their leaders …Whatever has been looted from the public, every penny will have to be returned, this is Modi’s guarantee,” PM Modi posted on X. 

A 13-year-old girl was stripped, thrashed with a hammer and iron rod, and her mouth taped by a woman and her two sons who kept her as a house help in Gurugram, according to a police complaint filed by the young girl’s mother. She was also given very little to eat.

The girl had been working at a house in Sector 57, Gurugram’s Cuber City.

The minor was allegedly stripped by the two sons of the Gurugram woman and filmed, with a threat that they would send her to a brothel if she did not obey them.

She was found locked inside a room with her mouth taped when rescuers reached the Gurugram home, news agency PTI reported. She told the police the family made her do all kinds of work, from cooking to washing to taking care of a dog.

The Gurugram family allegedly poured acid on her hands and threatened to kill her if she told anyone about it, PTI reported.

The girl’s mother in the police complaint said the Gurugram family did not let her meet her daughter for the past four months, and the last salary they gave was over four months ago.

The 13-year-old girl was rescued with the help of an Indian Air Force (IAF) officer at whose place her mother works. She had broken down in front of the officer and sought help, the police said.

All the three accused face charges under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, and the Juvenile Justice Act.