India’s main opposition party said Friday its bank accounts were frozen by the government’s tax agency earlier last week before being temporarily restored later in the day, ratcheting up tensions ahead of elections.
A spokesman for the Indian National Congress told reporters that the party’s access to its four accounts had been cut since Wednesday because of discrepancies in its tax returns. An hour after the briefing, the party said an appellate tribunal to the tax authority issued interim relief to the party, giving it access to its funds once again.
The income tax department follows due process to recover taxes and the freezing of funds is normal procedure after several rounds of engagement, according to a person familiar with the issue, who asked not to be identified in order to discuss the matter.