The Enforcement Directorate said Monday it has attached under the anti-money laundering law a plot of land in Panchkula that was allotted by the Haryana government in 2005 to the Associated Journals Limited (AJL), allegedly controlled by senior Congress leaders.
The central probe agency said it issued a provisional order of attachment under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act on December 1, the day CBI filed a chargesheet against former Haryana chief minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda and others for allegedly using fraudulent means to allot the land to AJL.
"... Since, the value of plot fraudulently allotted to AJL has represented proceeds of crime, the ED has attached the plot under PMLA Act," the agency said in a statement.
The AJL is reportedly controlled by senior Congress leaders, including members of the Gandhi family. The group runs the National Herald newspaper.
The plot has been attached under Section 5 of the PMLA (attachment of property involved in money laundering) and further investigation is in process, it said.
The ED said Hooda, as the then CM, "misused his official position by dishonestly and fraudulently allotting the said plot to AJL afresh in the guise of re-allotment at the rates prevalent in 1982 (Rs 91 per sqm) plus interest despite the fact that the cancellation of allotment of the plot had earlier attained finality and it could not legally be re-allotted."
The agency said its probe found that Hooda "granted undue extensions thrice to Ms AJL for construction of the said plot and after acquisition of the said plot projected it as untainted property and further acquired loans from the bank by way of mortgaging the same from tie to time."
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