The Income Tax Department (ITD) on Wednesday conducted searches on multiple premises linked to Delhi Transport minister Kailash Gahlot in the national capital and Gurugram in connection with an alleged tax evasion case, officials said.

They said at least 16 locations in and around the national capital are being raided by a team of about 30 ITD sleuths.

The searches are being conducted as part of a tax evasion probe against two construction firms linked to the minister and others, the officials said.

According to an ANI alert, at present, searches are underway at Brisk Infrastructure and Developers Ltd and Corporate International Financial Services Ltd.

The IT department also conducted raid at the residence of Gahlot in Vasant Kunj.

Gahlot is the minister for transport, law and revenue and is an Aam Admi Party (AAP) MLA from the Najafgarh Assembly Constituency.

The Aam Aadmi Party has called the raids a result of “political vendetta”.

“Friendship with Nirav Modi, (Vijay) Mallya, and raid on us? Modiji, you conducted raids on me, Satyendar (Jain) and Manish (Sisodia) as well. What happened to that? Did you get anything? You got nothing. At least apologise to Delhi before conducting another raid on its elected government,” Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said in a tweet in Hindi.

नीरव मोदी, माल्या से दोस्ती और हम पर रेड?

मोदी जी, आपने मुझ पे, सत्येन्द्र पे और मनीष पे भी तो रेड करवाई थीं? उनका क्या हुआ? कुछ मिला? नहीं मिला? तो अगली रेड करने के पहले दिल्ली वालों से उनकी चुनी सरकार को निरंतर परेशान करने के लिए माफ़ी तो माँग लीजिए? https://t.co/GUGEb0dwL5

— Arvind Kejriwal (@ArvindKejriwal) October 10, 2018

The party said that while they were busy working for the people of Delhi, the BJP was getting raids conducted at houses of AAP ministers and leaders.

“Political vendetta continues… we are giving cheap electricity to the people, free water, good health and education services to the people. We are also delivering government services at people’s doorsteps. And they are forcing CBI, ED to conduct raids at the residences of our ministers and leaders. The public is watching everything and will give a reply in 2019 polls,” the party tweeted.

(With agency inputs)