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Dhiraj Prasad Sahu Wiki, Age, Caste, Wife, Family, Biography & More
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Dhiraj Prasad Sahu Wiki, Age, Caste, Wife, Family, Biography & More

Dhiraj Prasad Sahu

Dhiraj Prasad Sahu is an Indian politician, a veteran member of the Indian National Congress, and a three-time Rajya Sabha MP. In 2023, he hit the headlines after more than Rs. 350 crores were seized from his various premises in the raids by the Income Tax department.

Wiki/Biography

Dhiraj Prasad Sahu was born on Monday, 23 November 1959 (age 64 years; as of 2023) in Lohardaga, Jharkhand. His zodiac sign is Sagittarius. In 1979, he pursued a Bachelor of Arts degree at Marwari College, Ranchi University, Jharkhand.

Physical Appearance

Height (approx.): 5′ 6″

Weight (approx.): 60 kg

Hair Colour: Black

Eye Colour: Black

Dhiraj Prasad Sahu's physical appearence

Family

Parents & Siblings

Dhiraj Prasad Sahu’s father, Baldev Prasad Sahu, was a freedom fighter who, after actively participating in the fight for India’s independence, was given the title Rai Saheb. His mother’s name is Sushila Devi. He has six brothers. His elder brother, Shivprasad Sahu, was a Congress MP. In 2019, his brother Gopal Sahu contested the Lok Sabha elections from Hazaribagh but lost.

Wife & Children

There is not much information about his wife. He has a son named Harshit.

Address

Thana Path, P.O. & P.S. – Lohardaga, Distt. – Lohardaga, Jharkhand [1]India.gov.in

Signature

Dhiraj Prasad Sahu's signature

Dhiraj Prasad Sahu’s signature

Career

Dhiraj Prasad Sahu entered politics on a ticket of the Indian National Congress. In 1979, he became a member of the National Students’ Union of India at Ranchi University and served as its member till 1983. In 1978, he was put behind bars during the Jail Bharo Andolan. Later, he took charge as an office-bearer of the Congress party in the Lohardaga district before joining the Jharkhand Pradesh Congress Committee.

Dhiraj Sahu greeting Rahul Gandhi at a rally in Shillong

Dhiraj Sahu greeting Rahul Gandhi at a rally in Shillong

In May 2009, he contested his maiden Lok Sabha election from the Chatra constituency on a ticket of the Indian National Congress but faced heavy defeat in the election. A month later, i.e., in June 2009, he was elected to the Rajya Sabha in a bypoll; the seat was left empty by Digvijay Singh after he voluntarily resigned from the Rajya Sabha. In 2014, he again contested the Lok Sabha election from the Chatra constituency on a ticket of the Indian National Congress. However, he lost the elections and barely got a little over 16% votes. In May 2018, he preceded Pradeep Kumar Balmuchu to be elected to the Rajya Sabha for the third time from Jharkhand. In addition, he has served as a member of several parliamentary committees including the Standing Committee of Coal, Mines, and Steel, and the Consultative Committee of Power and New & Renewable Energy.

Controversy

IT Raids in 2023

On 6 December 2023, the Income Tax department launched marathon raids against Boudh Distillery Private Limited, an Odisha-based distillery company, and its promoters on charges of tax evasion and unaccounted transactions. The distillery company is owned by Dhiraj Prasad Sahu and his family. A total of Rs. 351 crore cash was found at Dhiraj Prasad Sahu’s residence in Ranchi. Raids were also carried out at Sabalpur, Bolangir, Titilagarh, Boudh, Sudargarh, Rourkela, and Bhubaneswar. According to some reports, it was the largest cash seizure ever carried out by an agency in India against a single group and businesses associated with it.

Income Tax officials at Dhiraj Sahu's residence

Income Tax officials at Dhiraj Sahu’s residence

Later, Jairam Ramesh, the Congress general secretary, released a statement regarding the issue and said,

The Indian National Congress is in no way connected with the businesses of Dheeraj Sahu, MP. Only he can explain, and should explain, how huge amounts of cash have been reportedly unearthed by the Income Tax authorities from his properties.”

Other BJP members alleged Dhiraj of misusing his powers and his close relationship with Rahul Gandhi. Deepak Prakash, former BJP State president and Rajya Sabha member, said,

This corruption cannot happen without the support of the JMM (Jharkhand Mukti Morcha) government running the state. Congress and corruption have a close relationship. Whenever Congress has come to power, whether it is at the Centre or in State, rampant corruption has taken place. Dhiraj Sahu has a close relationship with Congress leader Rahul Gandhi.”

Meanwhile, an old tweet from August 2022, made by Dhiraj Prasad Sahu, went viral on social media in which he expressed his views on black money prevailing in the country even after the demonetisation.

Later, Prime Minister Narendra Modi brought attention to these raids on Twitter and promised to “guarantee” the return of all funds “looted from the public.”

Car Collection

He has four personal vehicles to his name, a BMW, a Fortuner, a Pagero, and a Range Rover.

Salary/Income

In 2018, his annual earning through multiple businesses was estimated to be around Rs 1 crore. [2]The Indian Express

Assets/Properties

Movable Assets

  • Cash: Rs. 15,00,000
  • Deposits in Banks, Financial Institutions and Non-Banking Financial Companies: Rs. 2,42,31,965
  • Bonds, Debentures and Shares in companies: Rs. 31,16,000

Immovable Assets

  • Non-Agricultural Land: Rs. 2,00,00,000
  • Residential Buildings: Rs. 95,00,000

Note: The given estimates of movable and immovable assets are according to the year 2019. It excludes the assets owned by his wife and dependents. [3]My Neta

Net Worth

Dhiraj Prasad Sahu’s net worth for the year 2019 was estimated to be Rs. 32 crore.

Note: It excludes the net worth of his wife and dependents. [4]My Neta

Facts/Trivia

  • In 2023, the Ranchi residence of Dhiraj Prasad Sahu that was raided by the Income Tax department was named Sushila Niketan after his late mother, Sushila Devi.
  • During the cash counting in the IT raids in 2023, the IT department used dozens of cash-counting machines and involved banks, but a lot of the machines broke down because of the large sum of money.
  • In November 2022, Sahu participated in Rahul Gandhi’s Bharat Jodo Yatra.

  • Dhiraj Prasad Sahu is the third generation from his family to be associated with the Congress party. Indira Gandhi once stayed at his residence in Lohardaga during one of her election campaigns. [5]The Hindu
  • Reportedly, Sahu’s family is involved in many businesses such as liquor, hotels, real estate, transportation, and fisheries.
  • According to reports, Dheeraj Sahu’s father, Baldev, gave the Indian government Rs. 47 lakh and 47 kg of gold after the country’s independence in 1947 to help boost the economy. [6]India Today
  • Sahu’s ancestral home is often referred to as the ‘White House of Lohardaga’ due to its important role in Congress’s political activities. [7]India Today

References[+]

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