Page 16 - Enforcement Directorate

ED arrests one more; conducts searches in Ranchi in a case against Soren

The Enforcement Directorate has made a fresh arrest in connection with the money laundering investigation against former Jharkhand chief minister Hemant Soren and others, official sources said Tuesday. The federal agency also undertook some searches in Ranchi against a person named Antu Tirkey, who is allegedly linked to the case. The arrested person identified as Afshar Ali was lodged in jail under judicial custody in another money laundering case and the agency has taken his custody in the latest case after seeking a designated court's permission. Ali is accused of committing "forgery" for allegedly grabbing some land in Jharkhand in purported connivance with the prime accused in the case against Soren and former revenue department sub inspector Bhanu Pratap Prasad. This is the fourth arrest in the instant case. The 48-year-old JMM leader Soren was arrested by the ED in January shortly after he resigned as the CM. He is currently lodged at the Birsa Munda jail at Hotwar in Ranch

Oppn criticises PM for praising ED action, claims misuse of law can be seen

Taking a jibe at the Prime Minister's earlier 'jhola leke aye hain' (come with a jhola bag) remark, Patole said that people will vote him out of power LS polls

ED nabs man who managed AAP's Goa poll funds, party claims probe motivated

The Enforcement Directorate has arrested Chanpreet Singh, who allegedly "managed" cash funds for AAP's campaign in the 2022 Goa Assembly polls, in connection with the Delhi excise policy-linked money laundering case, official sources said on Monday. The Aam Aadmi Party alleged the ED was carrying out a "politically motivated" probe and it was unable to recover a single rupee or find evidence in the matter. Singh was taken into custody under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) on April 12 and was produced before a special court here the next day, the sources said. He has been sent to ED custody till April 18 by the court, they said. This is the 17th arrest in the case by the ED. Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, his party colleague and former deputy CM Manish Sisodia, BRS leader K Kavitha and a number of liquor businessmen and others have been arrested earlier by the federal agency. Singh was earlier arrested by the Central Bureau of Investigation too in the same case

Why are CBI, ED not interested in CAG reports on corruption: Pawan Khera

Congress leader Pawan Khera on Monday questioned probe agencies for not looking into CAG reports that he claimed had made allegations of corruption against the Union government. Addressing a press conference here, Khera, the Congress' national spokesperson, claimed CAG reports contained "serious allegations" of irregularities in infrastructure works like the Bharatmala Pariyojana, the Dwarka Expressway, all of which are part of the Union ministry of road transport and highways headed by Nitin Gadkari. Gadkari is the Bharatiya Janata Party's Lok Sabha candidate from Nagpur. He won the seat with huge margins in 2014 and 2019. Khera alleged the ministry had issued bonds worth Rs1 lakh crore without approval of the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs. He also claimed the National Highway Authority of India, which functions under the Union Ministry of Road Transport and Highways, had taken huge loans "without application of mind", while its cost of construction had doubled. "Where is

Another setback to Kejriwal, CAT refuses stay on Bibhav Kumar's termination

Bibhav Kumar was dismissed on grounds of 'illegal appointment' by the Vigilance Department

SC rejects Amanatullah Khan's bail plea, asks him to appear before ED

The Supreme Court Monday refused to entertain an anticipatory bail plea of AAP MLA Amanatullah Khan in a money laundering case related to alleged irregularities in the Delhi Waqf Board during his chairmanship. A bench of Justices Sanjiv Khanna and Dipankar Datta asked Khan to appear before the Enforcement Directorate on Apr 18 at 11 am in the case. The bench took exception to certain observations made in the March 11 verdict of the Delhi High Court with regard to the merit of the case and said it will not have any bearing in the matter. The Okhla MLA had approached the Delhi High Court after his application for anticipatory bail in the case was rejected by a trial court on March 1. Khan was not named as an accused in the charge sheet that the ED filed recently. The agency has named five people in its prosecution complaint (the ED's equivalent of a charge sheet) that included three alleged associates of Khan -- Zeeshan Haider, Daud Nasir and Jawed Imam Siddiqui. Searches were cond

Excise policy scam case: K Kavitha seeks bail, court to hear plea today

BRS leader K Kavitha on Monday moved a Delhi court seeking bail in a corruption case lodged by the CBI in connection with the alleged excise scam. The application is likely to be taken up for hearing later in the day by special judge for the CBI and ED, Kaveri Baweja, who earlier in the day sent Kavitha to judicial custody till April 23. The daughter of former Telangana chief minister K Chandrashekar Rao was arrested from Tihar Jail, where she has been lodged after her arrest by the Enforcement Directorate (ED). The CBI produced the accused before court on expiry of her three-day police custody granted earlier by the judge and sought her JC. The probe agency told the court that she was not required for further custodial interrogation. Advocate Nitesh Rana, representing Kavitha along with Deepak Nagar, opposed the police plea, saying the grounds were not sufficient to keep her in custody since she is no longer required for custodial interrogation. CBI officials had recently questi

Excise policy scam: ED's reply sought over Kejriwal's plea against arrest

The Supreme Court on Monday sought response from the Enforcement Directorate on a plea by Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal challenging his arrest in a money-laundering case stemming from the alleged excise policy scam. A bench of Justices Sanjiv Khanna and Dipankar Datta issued notice to the ED on Kejriwal's plea challenging the Delhi High Court order that had upheld his arrest in the case. The bench asked the ED to file reply to the plea by April 24, and said the matter would be heard in the week commencing April 29. The high court had on April 9 upheld his arrest in the money-laundering case, saying the ED was left with "little option" after he skipped repeated summonses and refused to join the investigation. The high court had dismissed the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader's petition challenging his arrest by the ED and subsequent remand in the federal agency's custody. The matter pertains to alleged corruption and money laundering in the formulation and execution of the Delhi

Excise policy scam: Court sends K Kavitha to judicial custody till April 23

A Delhi court on Monday sent BRS leader K Kavitha, arrested in connection with a corruption case linked to the alleged Delhi excise policy scam, to judicial custody till April 23. The daughter of former Telangana chief minister K Chandrashekar Rao was arrested from the Tihar Jail, where she was lodged after her arrest by the Enforcement Directorate (ED). The CBI produced the accused before the court on expiry of her three-day police custody granted earlier by the judge and sought her JC. The CBI told the court that she was not required for further custodial interrogation. Advocate Nitesh Rana, representing Kavitha along with Deepak Nagar, opposed the police plea, saying the grounds were not sufficient to keep her in custody since she is no longer required for custodial interrogation. CBI officials had recently questioned Kavitha inside prison after obtaining permission from a special court. The BRS leader was questioned about the WhatsApp chats recovered from co-accused Buchi Babu

ED opposed approver's int'l travel before Kejriwal's arrest: Sanjay Singh

AAP Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh Sunday alleged that the ED opposed foreign travel of the government witness at whose testimony Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal was arrested in the excise policy case. Singh questioned the agency's intentions in doing that and cited in support a media report, according to which, the Enforcement Directorate opposed the foreign travel of P Sarath Chandra Reddy, a non-executive director of Hyderabad-based Aurobindo Pharma, in a court three months before Kejriwal's arrest. There was no immediate reaction from the ED against the allegation. "The interesting thing is that ED opposed its approver Sarath Reddy's foreign visit on the ground that he may not return to India to support the case. "How will he come when you have made him write a false statement? Why will he join your investigation? And even if he does, what proof will he give against Kejriwal ji when he does not have any proof?" Singh asked. The Aam Aadmi Party leader, who too is an accused

ED writes to Karnataka Guv, Lokayukta over alleged scam in KOMUL hiring

The Enforcement Directorate has written to the Karnataka governor and the Lokayukta seeking registration of an FIR and independent probe into "systematic rigging" of a 2023 recruitment process in the Kolar-Chikkaballapur District Cooperative Milk Producers Union Limited (KOMUL) led by a Congress MLA under investigation in a money laundering case. Official sources told PTI that the alleged 'cash-for-jobs' racket was unearthed by the federal agency during searches conducted by it in January against K Y Nanjegowda, a Congress MLA from Malur seat in Kolar district, and his associates. They were raided as part of a money laundering investigation into an alleged illegal allotment of government land worth Rs 150 crore to ineligible persons. The alleged recruitment scam pertains to September, 2023 when KOMUL announced hiring for 81 positions through a written test conducted by the Mangalore University. The recruitment process, as per the ED, comprised a written test (85 per cent weightage)

K Kavitha threatened S C Reddy to pay Rs 25 crore to AAP: CBI tells court

BRS leader K Kavitha had allegedly "threatened" Aurobindo Pharma Promoter Sharath Chandra Reddy to pay Rs 25 crore to the Aam Aadmi Party for five retail zones allotted to his firm under the Delhi government's excise policy, the CBI told Special Court on Friday, while seeking her custody. Kavitha had told Reddy that in case of non-payment of money his business will be harmed in Telangana and Delhi under the Excise policy, the CBI has alleged. Reddy, who was an accused under the PMLA case probed by the Enforcement Directorate, had turned an approver in the case. He has not been charged sheeted by the CBI yet. Seeking custodial interrogation of Kavitha, the CBI told Special Judge Kaveri Baweja that it was on the "insistence and assurance" of Kavitha, daughter of former Telangana chief minister K Chandrasekhar Rao, that Reddy participated in the liquor business in the national capital. She assured him that she had contacts in the Delhi government and that she would help him in liquor

Highlights of the Day: IIP grows 5.7% in February, retail inflation falls to 4.85% in March

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Bengal PDS scam: ED attaches assets linked to Jyoti Priya Mallick, 2 others

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Friday said it has attached assets worth more than Rs 150 crore linked to former West Bengal food minister Jyoti Priya Mallick and two others in a PDS ration "scam"-related money laundering case. The other two accused are Mallick's alleged aide Bakibur Rahaman and TMC leader Shankar Adhya. All three have been arrested by the federal agency in the case. The attached assets include 48 immovable properties of different persons and entities including Mallick's house in Salt Lake, Bolpur, several other "benami properties" held in the name of his close associates, two hotels of Rahaman in Kolkata and Bengaluru each, bank balance in various accounts and fixed deposits, the ED said in a statement. It is also found that Mallick allegedly "received" some of these immovable properties worth more than crores of rupees as "gifts" in the name of his family members or close associates. Adhya is a TMC leader from Bongaon under North 24 Parganas district of West

AAP's Sisodia moves court seeking interim bail for election campaigning

AAP leader Manish Sisodia, who has been arrested by the CBI and ED in connection with the alleged Delhi excise policy scam case, on Friday moved a court here seeking interim bail for poll campaigning. Special Judge for the CBI and ED, Kaveri Baweja, is likely to take up the application for hearing later in the day. The CBI as well as the ED have alleged that irregularities were committed while modifying the Delhi excise policy, undue favours were extended to licence holders, licence fee was waived or reduced and licences were extended without the competent authority's approval. The beneficiaries allegedly diverted "illegal" gains to the accused officials and made false entries in their books of account to evade detection, the probe agencies have alleged. The former deputy chief minister was arrested by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on February 26, 2023, for his alleged role in the "scam". The Enforcement Directorate (ED) arrested Sisodia in a money-laundering case stemm

After ED, CBI arrests BRS leader K Kavitha in Delhi excise policy case

BRS leader K Kavitha is currently in judicial custody, lodged in Tihar Jail

Delhi Waqf Board case: ED moves court for arrest warrant against AAP MLA

The Enforcement Directorate on Wednesday moved a Delhi court seeking arrest warrant against AAP MLA Amanatullah Khan in a money laundering case related to alleged irregularities in appointments in the Delhi Waqf Board. Special Judge for CBI and ED, Rakesh Syal, posted the matter for April 18 after the ED sought time to file certain documents in support of the application. "Fresh application for issuance of open ended non-bailable warrant against Amanatullah Khan has been received from the Bail and Filing Section. It be checked and registered as per rules SPP (special public prosecutor) for ED seeks some time to file certain documents in support of the application. Heard. As requested, put up for consideration on April 18, 2024," the judge said. Khan, the Okhla MLA of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), was not named as an accused in a recent chargesheet filed by the ED. The ED, however, moved a magisterial court recently seeking prosecution of Khan for allegedly evading agency's summons in

CBI informs court it has questioned BRS leader Kavitha in Delhi excise case

The CBI informed a Delhi court on Wednesday it has questioned BRS leader K Kavitha in Tihar central jail in a corruption case related to the alleged Delhi excise scam. She is under judicial custody in Tihar in a money laundering case linked to the alleged scam. The court had on April 5 allowed the CBI to quiz Kavitha in jail, an order which she has challenged. The CBI informed the special judge for ED and CBI cases, Kaveri Baweja, that it interrogated Kavitha on April 6 following the court's order. The CBI made the submission in response to an application filed by advocate Nitesh Rana, appearing for Kavitha, against the CBI's plea seeking to interrogate her in judicial custody. The CBI told the court that since it has already quizzed Kavitha, it would not file a reply to her application. Rana, however, told the court that he would like to make arguments on Kavitha's application against the CBI's plea. The court posted the matter for further proceedings on April 26. Advocate Rana

BJP members detained amid protest seeking Delhi CM Kejriwal's resignation

AAP leaders, who have maintained that the case against Kejriwal is "fabricated", said he would not resign

Supreme Court stays trial in money laundering case against Santiago Martin

The Supreme Court on Wednesday stayed the proceedings before a special court in a money laundering case against 'lottery king' Santiago Martin. A bench of Justices Abhay S Oka and Ujjal Bhuyan issued notice on a plea by Martin challenging the March 16 order of a special PMLA court in Kerala's Ernakulam dismissing his petition for keeping in abeyance the trial in the money laundering case registered by the Enforcement Directorate (ED). Senior advocate Aditya Sondhi and advocate Rohini Musa, who appeared for Martin, said that the special court ought to have considered that the trial in the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) case can commence only after the conclusion of the trial in the predicate case. On March 16, the special court dismissed Martin's application seeking to keep in abeyance the trial in the ED case till the conclusion of trial in the predicate offence, a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) case related to an alleged lottery scam. In his plea before the top .