Maya's friend, liquor king Chadha linked to mining mafia?

New Delhi, Feb 4: After news splashed across media channels about the Income Tax raids on the properties of liquor baron Ponty Chadha, there were references on how the

, who is none other than Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati. There were also varied reports on the riches that emerged out of the raids that were reported to be anywhere from Rs 14 crore to Rs 200 crore.

With the raids touted to have a considerable impact on the financial position of Mayawati, there are reports today that Ponty Chadha might have links to the mining mafia. Media reports suggest that Chadha has connections with Uttar Pradesh's Orai-based mining mafia head Sukhdev Singh after close to Rs 1.5 crore was recovered from Sukhdev's office in Income Tax raids.

The I-T department had snooped down on Chadha's properties across Delhi and UP in as many as 17 places. It was reported that jewellery worth Rs 4 crore and Rs 50 lakh cash were seized. I-T officials carried out raids at 17 properties owned by the businessman. [Read: Ponty Chadha raided; Chidambaram helps Mayawati escape]

Ponty Chadha is famous in UP as the sole liquor distributor in the state. The Income Tax sources have alleged that each bottle sold by Ponty is marked above the MRP. The margin of the same is allegedly shared between Ponty and UP politicians.

OneIndia News