Over 31 hours of long questioning of Punjabi singer Kanwar Grewal by the Income Tax department team at his house in Mohali ended at around 5 pm on Tuesday. The officials have seized several documents but have not shared any information with media.
The Income Tax Department teams, accompanied by CRPF personnel, had carried out simultaneous search operations at the houses and offices of Punjabi singers Kanwar Grewal and Ranjit Bawa.
According to sources, Income Tax officials from Ludhiana led the operation to verify the alleged theft of tax by the singers based on numerous complaints. The operation was specifically to tally the actual earnings of the singers with the wealth disclosed by them.
Kanwar Grewal’s song ‘Rihai’ was banned by the Ministry of Home Affairs. The song talked about releasing Sikh prisoners who had been languishing in jails for several years.
I-T officials conducted the operation at his house in Taj Towers, Mohali, and another in Bathinda.
The family members of the singers were not allowed to move outside. No visitor was also allowed. Officials said a media release, if any, would be issued later on if the operations detect some incriminating financial activity.
The I-T operations come in the backdrop of intense questioning of several Punjabi singers by the officials of the NIA on the ‘influence’ of gangsters in Punjabi music industry.