The Income Tax authorities have launched raids at the various institutions under the Thiruvalla-based Believer’s Eastern Church.
According to officials, simultaneous raids were being conducted at the offices and residences of several persons associated with the Church, both inside and outside Kerala. The locations where the searches were being held included the church headquarters at Thiruvalla, a medical college hospital run by the institution and the residence of K.P.Yohannan, the church metropolitan.
The officials are also said to have seized several documents during the raids, besides an unspecified volume of unaccounted money. A confirmation on the same, however, was not available.
The raids are based on some specific inputs on tax evasion by the church and the details will be shared at a later stage, said an IT official.
The church spokespersons, meanwhile, were not available for a comment despite repeated attempts.
Over 1,000 cr foreign funds
Earlier in 2008, the church was alleged to have received ₹1,044 crore in foreign funding over a period of 18 years. Later in 2017, the Ministry of Home Affairs barred the church and three NGOs associated with it from receiving foreign funds .
