In a major development, the Income Tax Department has seized the bank account of Lucknow's Lulu Mall. According to the sources, Lulu Mall in Lucknow had outstanding tax dues of Rs 27 crore, which were not paid on time. Due to the failure to pay the tax on time, the Income Tax Department has seized the mall’s bank account.
Lulu Mall's manager faced rape and blackmail charges
Lucknow's Lulu Mall was embroiled in controversy earlier this year in July. A female employee levelled rape, blackmail, and physical assault allegations against the mall's manager. Acting on a complaint, the police had arrested the accused and sent him to jail.
According to the complaint, the woman, who works at Lulu Mall, alleged that the manager spiked her cold drink with a sedative and sexually assaulted her. During the incident, he also recorded a video and later used it to extort money from her. When she refused to comply, he allegedly threatened to leak the video online.
M.A. Yusuff Ali is the founder and chairman of the UAE-based company.
Notably, M.A. Yusuff Ali is the founder and chairman of the UAE-based Lulu Group International. The company operates hypermarkets and retail chains in many countries around the world, including India. The Lulu Group has a total of eight malls in India, five of which are located in Kerala alone. The Kerala malls are in Thiruvananthapuram, Kochi, Palakkad, Kozhikode, and Kottayam. Three malls are in Karnataka's Bengaluru, Uttar Pradesh's Lucknow, and Telangana's Hyderabad. The Lulu Group operates its malls under the hypermarket brand. In addition to hypermarkets, the Lulu Group also runs several retail stores.
Expansion plans in Nagpur, Ahmedabad, and other cities
Meanwhile, the Lulu Group is planning to expand its branches in several cities. Earlier in February, the Group shared details of its business expansion plans. As part of the expansion, the group is working on a new project in Nagpur, Maharashtra. Lulu Group Chairman Ali had said that the company is in the early stages of planning expansion in several cities, including Visakhapatnam in Andhra Pradesh and Ahmedabad in Gujarat. The Lulu Mall planned in Ahmedabad will be among the largest shopping malls in the city.
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