V G Siddhartha, the owner of Vaitarna Holdings Private Inc (VPHI), which controls local forest concessions amounting to 737,814 hectares, is currently facing a tax evasion investigation in India.
According to a Times of India report, from last Thursday to Sunday, India’s Income Tax Department conducted raids on just over two dozen properties belonging to Siddartha across the country, including in Bengaluru, Hassan, Chikkamagaluru, Chennai and Mumbai.
Siddhartha, who is the owner of India’s largest coffee chain Cafe Coffee Day (CCD), the report said, also admitted to concealing Rs 650 Crore, equivalent to just under US$100 million, in income.
