Jharkhand Cong seeks 'clarification' from Sahu on cash haul

Jharkhand Congress in-charge Avinash Pandey on Sunday said that a clarification has been sought from party MP Dheeraj Sahu in connection with the recovery of huge cash from premises linked to him.

Pandey, however, clarified that is it a private matter of Dheeraj Sahu and the party has nothing to do with it.

"Since he is Congress MP, he should make an official statement about how such a big amount of money came to him," Pandey said while speaking to media persons at Ranchi's Birsa Munda airport.

He also said, "The party has a clear-cut stand that it is a private matter of Dheeraj Sahu, which has nothing to do with the Congress party.

A huge pile of cash has been recovered so far in the searches conducted by the Income Tax department against Odisha-based Boudh Distillery Private Limited and entities linked to it. Premises linked to Sahu were also covered as part of the searches, according to officials.

The seizure amount is expected to reach Rs 290 crore, making it the "highest-ever" cash haul by any agency in a single operation, official sources said on Saturday.

Pandey said that the Income-Tax department has so far not made any official statement regarding the raid and recovery but the way allegations are being made linking the party is unfortunate.

"The family which has business establishment for more than 100 years here and it is the joint business of the family. Dheeraj Sahu is just a part of the business. But, Sahu should clarify how such big amount came to him," Pandey said.

He, however, said that an official statement should also come from the Income Tax department about the quantity of cash and how it came.

Pandey was in Ranchi to welcome retired state administrative official Dr Sanjay Singh and retired Kargil warrior Hridaynand Yadav, who joined the Congress party at party headquarters.

Speaking at Congress headquarters, Pandey alleged that a conspiracy is being carried out to defame the opposition parties in the country.

"Since the day a majority alliance government came to power in Jharkhand, BJP has been hatching a conspiracy to destabilise it. This is not only in Jharkhand but the conspiracy is being done against all non-BJP governments elected through democratic process in the country under 'Operation Lotus'.

"BJP is doing it openly without caring about any constitutional values," he said.

Taking a dig at Pandey's statement, senior BJP leader and Ranchi MLA CP Singh said, "Congress wants to get rid of Sahu so that its bosses could be protected. Is Sahu Congress MP or Independent? If he is an Independent candidate, then he can say that party has nothing to do."