The Income Tax department personnel from Bengaluru have launched a search operation in several places on properties linked to people associated with the Janata Dal (Secular), on Tuesday.

In Mandya, searches are underway at the properties of S.P. Swamy Somanahalli near Maddur and Thimmegowda at Pandavapura. According to souces in JD(S), the searches began in the early hours at various locations including saw-mill, fertilizer godown/shop and residences of the leaders.

Both the leaders are prominent in the region and are actively invloved in the election campaign of Nikhil Kumaraswamy, the party's Lok Sabha candidate in Mandya and the son of Karnataka Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy.

The officials reached the house of Deve Gowda (Papanni), cousin of State Minister H.D.Revanna at Haradanahalli in Holenarsipur on Tuesday morning.

Similarly, in Hassan a house belonging to Karle Indresh, a JD(S) supporter and director of HDCC Bank (Hassan Dist. Co-op. Central Bank Ltd.) is being searched by the officials.

Houses of former MLC Patel Shivaram and former HDCC bank chairman H. Sathish are also being searched.

Prajwal Revanna, son of Mr. Revanna is the party's candidate from Hassan.

I-T department statement

In an official statement, Income Tax Department said they are carrying out searches at over ten premises in Bengaluru, Mandya and Hassan. However, the department has remained silent on the political links of the persons being searched.

"The searches being conducted today are based on credible intelligence that certain businessmen have earned income not disclosed to tax and are in possession of undisclosed assets. The taxpayers covered in today's search operations are engaged in the business of real estate, quarrying and stone crushing, executing Government contracts, operating petrol bunks, saw mill and managing cooperative Banks. These are sectors which are prone to generation of black money," the statement said.