Sonu Sood On Tax Evasion It Will Not Even Take 18 Hours To Finish 18 Crores
Mumbai: Actor Sonu Sood has denied allegations of tax evasion and illegal funding, days after tax raids at his Mumbai home and offices. Speaking with NDTV, he opened up on the income tax raid row and said that he is a law-abiding citizen and had received offers of a Rajya Sabha seat from two parties but he was ‘not mentally ready to join politics. He further added that ‘whatever documents, details they asked for, we gave. Whatever questions they asked, we answered. He also said that they are still providing documents and it is a part of the process.Also Read – Sonu Sood’s Statement on IT Raids Starts Meme Fest on Twitter, #ScamSood Trends
When asked about Income Tax’s allegations that he violated the law, he denied it and said, “Of course not.” He also added that he will make sure ‘every single penny donated by anyone in this universe is accounted for’. Also Read – Sonu Sood Shares Cryptic Post After Income Tax Raid: You Don’t Always Have To Tell Your Side Of Story
He was quoted as saying, “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. I make sure every single penny donated by anyone in this universe is accounted for.” Also Read – Sonu Sood Evaded Taxes of Over Rs 20 Crore, Violated FCRA Norms: I-T Department
“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 that can save lives. I have 54,000 unread mails, 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 continued.
He added that the money had not been lying around for years but only three-four months and he had to do due diligence before supporting a cause.
On the charge of receiving foreign funds illegally, he said that he ‘can’t get a single dollar into my account, the money was directly going to beneficiaries’. The actor also revealed that the taxmen agreed that he had done ‘good work’.
He said, “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.”
On his collaboration with AAP for a school education mentorship, he said, “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. 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 that he will continue with his charity work, no matter what. He said, “I didn’t start to stop. It’s just the beginning.”
Recently, I-T department released a statement where they alleged Sonu Sood of over Rs 20 crore of tax evasion. The statement reads, “During the course of search at the premises of the actor and his associates, incriminating evidence pertaining to tax evasion have been found. The main modus operandi followed by the actor had been to route his unaccounted income in the form of bogus unsecured loans from many bogus entities. Investigations so far have revealed the use of 20 such entries, the providers of which, on examination, have accepted on oath to have given bogus accommodation entries. They have accepted to have issued cheques in lieu of cash. There have been instances where professional receipts have been camouflaged as loans in the books of accounts for the purpose of evasion of tax. It has also been revealed that these bogus loans have been used for making investments and acquiring properties. The total amount of tax evaded unearthed so far, amounts to more than ₹ 20 crore.”
As per the allegations against the actor, his non-profit Sood Charity Foundation was set up in July last year during Covid-19 first wave, has collected donations of over Rs 18 crore till April last year. Out of which Rs 1.9 crore has been spent on relief work and the balance Rs 17 crore has been lying unused in the non-profit organisation’s bank account.
The tax department also added in the statement, “The simultaneous search operations carried out at various premises of an infrastructure group in Lucknow in which the actor has entered into a joint venture real estate project and invested substantial funds, have resulted in the unearthing of incriminating evidence pertaining to tax evasion and irregularities in the books of account.”