Indian Income Tax Department Conducts Raids on Prominent YouTubers In Kerala

In Kerala, the homes and businesses of well-known YouTubers and content creators were raided by the Income Tax Department on Thursday. The government alleges that many YouTubers and other video content creators were not paying taxes in accordance with their income and raids were carried out.

As of now, the homes and businesses of 13 well-known YouTubers and content producers, including vlogger Pearle Maaney, were raided. Raids were carried out in the districts of Kasargod, Pathanamthitta, Thrissur, Alappuzha, and Kottayam. Other than Pearle, vloggers Sujith Bhaktan, Arjou, Jayaraj G. Nath, Akhil and many more houses were also part of the raid.

Vlogger Sujith Bhaktan Comes Forward With a Statement

Sujith Bhaktan, a popular YouTuber, refuted the rumors that his home had been searched. He made it clear that his home has not yet been the target of a raid. Sujith Bhaktan's Facebook post reads:

"I watched the raid news on television. My home has not yet been searched. For the past five years, income tax and GST have been paid on time. Even if it does, I must offer my complete cooperation. Everyone is subject to the same laws."

The YouTubers claim they have no set income and the monthly payments they receive from YouTube and other social media platforms rely on how many views they get. These claims haven't convinced the Income Tax Department, prompting them to conduct their own investigation.

The IT team also looked into the bank records and other transaction information pertaining to the earnings of these YouTubers. Additionally, according to IT sources, other raids aimed at YouTubers in the state are scheduled for the coming days. The financial transactions of vloggers are being examined by officials with reports stating that tax evasion complaints have been lodged against the offenders.

The government has acknowledged that Kerala's well-known vloggers earn between Rs 1-2 crore from the video platform each year. In Kerala, one of the most well-known names is Pearle Maaney. After beginning her career as a TV host, Pearle rose to fame with the programme "D4Dance." While taking a sabbatical from the entertainment world, the former Bigg Boss Malayalam runner-up is keeping active with her vlogs. Her vlogs are well-liked by viewers and range from tech reviews to sharing candid videos with her family. Notably, she has over 2.5 million internet subscribers and is one of the bigger names targetted in the raid.