VG Siddhartha found dead: Was Cafe Coffee Day owner harassed by Income Tax dept? Taxman says this

The Cafe Coffee Day founder VG Siddhartha, also the son-in-law of former Karnataka Chief Minister SM Krishna, was found dead this morning. Siddhartha's body was recovered about 36 hours after he went missing from a bridge near Mangaluru in Karnataka. The CCD owner had gone missing on Monday evening after which a massive search operation was initiated. The body had washed up on to the banks of Netravati river near Ullal in Mangaluru and was recovered by local fishermen at around 6:30 this morning. "Friends and relatives have confirmed that the body is of VG Siddhartha," Mangaluru lawmaker and former minister UT Khader was quoted as saying by news agency ANI.

Before Siddhartha went missing, he had written a letter to Cafe Coffee Day Board, alleging harassment by an income tax officer. He had also expressed regret for not being able to create "the right profitable business", but added that his intention was not to cheat. VG Siddhartha's offices were raided by income tax officers in September 2017.

Sringeri MLA TD Rajegow also alleged that Siddhartha was upset over Income Tax torture and wanted to sell some of his properties. "He was a little upset regarding the Income Tax torture, wanted to sell 2-3 properties to settle all the debts because he was having more assets than liabilities," Rajegow told ANI.

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However, shortly after the controversy erupted, the taxman denied all charges. The purported suicide letter too was questioned saying that Siddhartha's available signature was different. It said the businessman had admitted to wrongdoing after income tax raids were conducted against him.

The founder of India's largest coffee chain, Siddhartha was last seen on the bridge over the Netravati river on Monday evening. His driver Basavaraj Patil had told the police that they were going to Sakleshpur from Bengaluru in a Toyota Innova - a 220-km drive - when the businessman asked him to turn towards Mangaluru. Siddhartha asked the driver to wait at the other end of the bridge. His body was recovered after hours of search operation by multiple teams of police forces, along with the Coast Guard and the National Disaster Response Force.