Thread by @churumuri

When Rs 2,840,000,000—i.e. Rs 284 crore—is seized from one businessman’s house in the country’s biggest ever tax haul, can there be any confusion on who he is, and whose money it is? In “No.1 state” #UttarPradesh, anything is possible. A thread. #PiyushJain #ShikharPanMasala

2️⃣ Prime minister @narendramodi and UP chief minister @myogiadityanath blithely insinuate that the businessman #PiyushJain was a Samajwadi Party man—and that he was hoarding the cash for SP, the BJP’s arch rival, for use in the upcoming state election. #ShikharPanMasala

3️⃣ To be fair, when news of the raids in #Kanpur and #Kannauj was leaked on the night of December 24, Hindi newspapers @amarujala and @DainikBhaskar were quick to link #PiyushJain with ‘Samajwadi Itr’, a perfume developed for SP. Surprisingly, @JagranNews was more circumspect.

4️⃣ Since then, BJP has alleged that #PiyushJain was the man behind ‘Samajwadi Itr’ launched by @yadavakhilesh in November. But a @timesofindia report last month credits the “scent of socialism” to Pushparaj Jain alias ‘Pammi’ Jain, an SP MLC and perfume maker, also from Kannauj.

5️⃣ According to the Hindi @news24tvchannel, this is how the two Jains, the two perfume makers look. One hairy, 50; the other bald, 60. Mug shots published when #PiyushJain was arrested and later when in custody also leave no doubt of his identity. @AmarUjalaNews @JagranNews

6️⃣ So, why the confusion between P. Jain and P.Jain? An @IndianExpress report quotes SP chief @yadavakhilesh: “They wanted to raid Pushpraj Jain, but by mistake raided Peeyush Jain. It seemed like a mistake of Digital India.” #PiyushJain #ShikharPanMasala indianexpress.com/article/cities…

7️⃣ How was #PiyushJain caught? An official press release says 4 trucks carrying #ShikharPanMasala and tobacco without #GST payment were intercepted in Gujarat. The trucks belonged to Ganpati Road Carriers of Kanpur. Ergo, the manufacturer and transporter were acting in collusion.

8️⃣ Why is this important? The last elections in #UttarPradesh came months after #Demonetisation in 2016, which squeezed the funds of BJP’s rivals to its advantage. Was the 2021 raid a similar attempt that went awry? #ShikharPanMasala has deleted its BJP links online. #PiyushJain

9️⃣ What next? Obviously, the #PiyushJain saga reveals the failure of #Demonetisation to stem black money—and the holes in #GST. ‘Dainik Jagran’ draws a link with egg manufacturers in South India, who could be using Kanpur’s pan masala makers as a ‘hawala’ route. #ShikharPanMasala

🔟 In all the ‘tu-tu-main-main’ between BJP and SP, one possibility has been glossed over. What if #PiyushJain is his own man, not linked to either party, and if the stash of cash is his own, the product of his ingenuity, accumulated over the last 4-5 years? @JagranNews

1️⃣1️⃣ “These fellows (Piyush Jain & Co) are BJP-minded people. They hardly ever get out of their houses. How can they be with Samajwadi Party?”: Pushparaj Jain, the SP MLC, who launched ‘Samajwadi Saugandh’, in his own voice, on @SatyaHindi: