I may get arrested or attacked but I wont back down: Naidu on IT notice

Vijayawada: Former chief minister of Andhra Pradesh and TDP supremo Nara Chandrababu Naidu, has accused the ruling YSRCP of filing false cases against him and his party leaders in an attempt to silence them.

During an interactive program in Rayadurgam of Anantapur district on Wednesday, Naidu reacted on the Income Tax notices row. He said that the YSRCP has been trying to target him since it came to power in 2019. "They can arrest me, attack me, but I wont back down" said Naidu.

"The YSRCP has been bringing up companies and luring to give my name in corruption allegations. I have been in politics for 45 years, and no case has ever been filed against me. The late CM YS Rajasekhar Reddy had filed 26 enquiries against me, but none of them led to any charges," said Naidu.

"I have lived my life with honesty and integrity. No corruption charges have ever been filed against me. I was the one who proposed the demonetization to fight corruption. However, the YSRCP is now making false accusations against me. I will not be intimidated by their smear campaign. I will continue to fight against corruption, no matter what obstacles they put in my way," he added.

It may be noted that a few days ago, the Income Tax Department issued a show-cause notice to former Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu, seeking an explanation for his alleged undisclosed income of Rs 118 crore. The notice was issued on August 4, 2023, and asked Naidu to explain why the ITD should not treat the amount as his undisclosed income for the assessment year 2020-21. IT department in the notice said, Manoj Vasudev Pardasany (MVP), who was taking part in the tendering process in Andhra Pradesh on behalf of Shapoorji Pallonji & Co Pvt Ltd (SPCL) since December 2017, siphoned off Rs 118 crore funds from SPCL and L&T and delivered them to Chandrababu Naidu through companies such as Phoenix Infra & Pour Trading.

The officials recovered several incriminating messages, chats, and Excel sheets during search operations. Vinay Nangalia, who was a CA helped MVP arrange three companies (Annai, Haigreeva, and Shalaka) that would be willing to enter into bogus contracts and arrange pass-back of cash to MVP for distribution to the TDP Party.

The allegations of corruption against Naidu have been a major source of controversy and played centre stage in Andhra Pradesh 2019 politics. Leaving no chance, the YSRCP again launched an attack on Naidu, demanding that he explain on IT notices.