CBI raids Virbhadra's premises; Congress terms it "inhumane"

In an unprecedented action on a serving Chief Minister, CBI today raided the official residence of Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh in Shimla and 12 other places in connection with an alleged disproportionate assets case on a day his daughter was getting married.
Searches were carried out at his official residence Delhi, his ancestral place Padam Palace in Rampur and a farm house in Mehrauli in South Delhi which is in the name of his son Vikramaditya Singh.
An 18-member CBI team swooped on the 81-year-old Chief Minister's residence in Shimla within minutes of his leaving with relatives for Sankat Mochan temple at 7.30 AM to solemnise marriage of his second daughter.

Four premises in Parwanoo in Himachal Pradesh and Shimla of Anand Chauhan, believed to be close to Singh, and his brother Chunni Lal Chauhan were also searched. Three places in Delhi belonging to an alleged hawala dealer were also raided.
Besides two places in Shakur Basti and Lawrence Road in Delhi of an associate were also searched by the agency.
"This FIR was the outcome of a Preliminary Enquiry (PE) which revealed that then Union Minister while serving during 2009-2012 (UPA rule) had allegedly accumulated assets worth Rs 6.03 crore (approx) in his name and in the name of his family members which were found to be disproportionate to his known sources of income," CBI spokesperson Dev Preet Singh said.

The FIR filed with a designated court in Delhi under the Prevention of Corruption Act, named Singh, his wife Pratibha Singh, LIC agent Anand Chauhan and Chunni Lal Chauhan.

In a statement, CBI spokesperson said it was further alleged that Singh had invested his unaccounted income in LIC policies in his name and in the name of his wife and other family members through a private person by showing the same as agricultural income.
"This was done by creation of a MoU purportedly dated June 15, 2008 for maintenance of an apple orchard, with the said private person (Chauhan) for a period of three years. The private person had allegedly deposited Rs five crore cash (approx) in his own bank account and debited the same through cheques for purchasing various LIC policies in their names," CBI said.

It said Singh allegedly attempted to legitimize the same as agricultural income by filing revised Income Tax Returns in 2012.
"The agricultural income as claimed by him in his revised ITRs was not found to be tenable. The then Union Minister had allegedly accumulated other assets disproportionate to known sources of income," CBI alleged.
Terming the action as "highly vindictive", senior Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad said it is part of "Prime Minister Narendra Modi's hate agenda and political vendetta against Congress Party and its leaders (which) has reached its zenith today with CBI raids at the residence of India's senior most Chief Minister".