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Actor Sonu Sood today denied allegations of tax evasion and illegal funding, days after tax raids at his Mumbai home and offices. He called himself a law-abiding citizen of the country and revealed that he had received offers of a Rajya Sabha seat from two parties, which he declined.

“Whatever documents, details they asked for, we gave. Whatever questions they asked, I answered. I did my part, they did theirs. Whatever questions they raised, we answered each and every one of them with documents. That’s my duty. We are still providing documents…it is part of the process,” the actor told the press in an exclusive interview.

“I make sure every single penny donated by anyone in this universe is accounted for. “

On the Income Tax department’s allegations that he violated the law, he said, “Of course not.”

The 48-year-old actor who recently gained massive public support as a philanthropist has been accused of evading taxes worth over ₹ 20 crores.

The tax department also said his charity set up in July last year collected donations of over ₹ 18 crores but only ₹ 1.9 crores have been spent on relief work.

To this accusation, Sonu Sood responded, “It is very surprising. Whatever we collect is not just money donated by citizens. A chunk of that is also my remuneration from brand endorsements. I ask them to donate to a charity which can save lives.”

“I have 54,000 unread emails, thousands of messages on WhatsApp, Facebook, Twitter.  It will not even take 18 hours to finish 18 crores. But I have to make sure every single penny is used in a proper way, for a genuine and needy person,” he added.

The money, he added, had not been lying around for years but only for three-four months and he had to do due diligence before supporting a cause.

As for the charge that he had received foreign funding illegally, he said he “can’t get a single dollar into my account”. The money was going directly to beneficiaries, said Sonu Sood.

According to the actor, the taxmen agreed that he had done “good work”.

“I asked them – have you ever seen this kind of documentation, details, paperwork? They said no…they were also happy with whatever they were seeing. They said it was the smoothest four days of raids for them.”

Some parties have linked the raids to his recent collaboration with Arvind Kejriwal’s Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) for a school education mentorship.

“I am not allying with AAP. You call me into any state – Karnataka, Gujarat, I will go immediately, like magic. I have worked in all states — those ruled by BJP, Congress…”

He revealed that he had turned down offers of a Rajya Sabha membership because he didn’t feel ready for politics just yet.  “I declined two offers of Rajya Sabha seats from two different parties. Mentally I was not ready. I am currently happy in my place. Whenever I am ready, I will shout from the rooftops that I am ready,” he said.

For now, he said, he would continue with his charity, no matter what. “I didn’t start to stop. It’s just the beginning,” the actor has assured.

Actor Sonu Sood today denied

https://www.ndtv.com/india-news/sonu-sood-tells-ndtv-havent-broken-any-law-after-rs-20-crore-tax-evasion-allegation-2547066

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https://rtdjournal.com/income-tax-officials-raid-at-sonu-soods-door/

Income Tax Officials Raid At Sonu Sood’s Door: The properties of actor Sonu Sood in Mumbai and the company in Lucknow affiliated with have been inspected by the Income Tax Department, sources said today.

The tax investigation comes just days after a highly anticipated meeting of the actor and the Chief Minister of Delhi, Arvind Kejriwal, who announced him as ambassador for the Delhi government Mentorship Program for school students. After the meeting, Sonu Sood refused to answer questions about his involvement in political activities, most notably the court ruling by Mr Kejriwal’s Aam Aadmi Party (AAP).

The 48-year-old actor has received accolades for his charitable works, especially by arranging special flights in pandemic time for migrant workers last year. Sonu Sood’s humanitarian efforts have made him popular with fans, with many approaching him for help, even money.

He has never shown any interest in political involvement, but speculation arose after his meeting with the Kejriwal and questions arose as to whether the actor could participate in the Punjab election next year. The tax searches in Mumbai were linked by many to that meeting.

“There is no relation to that. Any personalities can meet anyone. It is just a search, not a raid. It’s on a tip off. It’s not necessary that the person who heads the charity has done anything wrong… It must be something at the lower level. Income Tax is an independent department, which has its own protocol. It is doing its job,” Asif Bhamla, BJP spokesman, said.

Mr Bhamla said the actor had close relationships with people across all parties.

But critics of the ruling party have expressed their  and shock at the tax action being carried out on Sonu Sood’s premises.

AAP leader Raghav Chaddha said: “An I-T raid on a man as upright as Sonu Sood, somebody who has been called a messiah by Lakhs of people, somebody who helped the downtrodden. If a man like him can be politically targeted in a well thought out witch-hunt shows that the current regime is insensitive and politically insecure.”

http://tdjournal.com

https://rtdjournal.com/covid-19-sonu-sood-to-set-up-18-oxygen-plants-in-over-16-states-across-india/

https://zeenews.india.com/people/tax-evasion-probe-it-dept-officials-at-premises-linked-to-sonu-sood-in-mumbai-2394175.html