We were targeted for working with Congress, they found nothing: Congress poll firm on I-T raids

Bengaluru: Political campaign management firm DesignBoxed, which was raided by the IT department said on Saturday that they were targeted for working with Congress and IT sleuths found nothing in their raids on its offices.

Naresh Arora, the Managing Director of the firm said, “The raids were obviously so political. They targeted me and my colleagues only because we have been working for the opposition and mainly Congress party.”

” We are proud taxpayers and law-abiding citizens. Apart from trying to find anything remotely incriminatory against top Congress leaders, the raids were intended to intimidate a self-made professional and political campaign management firm so that we don’t work for India’s main opposition party,” he added.

He further said, “It is unfortunate that even after being so powerful the ruling Karnataka government needs to intimidate those working with the opposition. An outright abuse of tax agencies for political aim is not what democracies do. The harassment we have suffered is not ours alone; it is part of the process of stifling the opposition through state power. ”

Days after raids on close associates of former chief minister BS Yediyurappa, Income Tax officials raided an image and political consultancy firm in Bengaluru that counts Karnataka Congress president DK Shivakumar as a client.

The firm, DesignBoxed, has been handling Shivakumar’s strategy and image for the past six months. It has also been involved in Congress campaigns in Assam and Chhattisgarh.

IT sleuths landed at DesignBoxed MD Naresh Arora’s room at the JW Marriott Hotel and his office, located close to Shivakumar’s residence, in the city.

(With inputs from IANS)