The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has provisionally attached assets worth ₹4.81 crore of five companies and others in connection with an alleged disproportionate assets case against Delhi Cabinet Minister Satyendar Kumar Jain and others.
The properties belong to Akinchan Developers, Indo Metalimpex, Paryas Infosolutions, Mangalayatan Projects and J.J. Ideal Estate, Swati Jain, Sushila Jain and Indu Jain, said the agency.
According to the agency, the action has been taken on the basis of an FIR registered by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) against Mr. Jain and others, under various provisions of the Indian Penal Code and the Prevention of Corruption Act.
“During the period 2015-16, when Satyendar Kumar Jain was a public servant, the above mentioned companies beneficially owned and controlled by him received accommodation entries to the tune of ₹4.81 crore from shell companies against cash transferred to Kolkata-based entry operators through hawala route,” the ED said in a statement.
It added that these funds were used for the purchase of land or for repayment of loans taken for buying agricultural land in and around Delhi.
The background
The CBI had registered the case against Mr. Jain, his wife Poonam Jain, Ajit Prasad Jain, Vaibhav Jain, Sunil Kumar Jain and Ankush Jain, following a preliminary enquiry into the allegations that Mr. Jain and his family members had control or stake/shareholding in Paryas Infosolutions, Indo Metalimpex, Akinchan Developers and Mangalayatan Projects.
These entities were accused of laundering money to the tune of ₹11.78 crore during 2010-12, and ₹4.63 crore during 2015-16, when Mr. Jain was a public servant, according to the FIR.
It also alleged that the funds were re-routed through shell companies that were used to purchase agricultural land worth ₹27.69 crore in Delhi during 2010-11 and 2013-14.
According to the CBI, these companies did not have any real business and they were used for parking black money.
The CBI had alleged that while Mr. Jain was a Minister, during the period from February 2015 to May 2017, assets worth about ₹1.62 crore were acquired in his name and that of his family members, disproportionate to their known sources of income.
AAP reaction
The AAP said the BJP was scared of the expansion of the Aam Aadmi Party all over India. “The way the Kejriwal model is being accepted everywhere, we were expecting such a response from the BJP that it will use agencies against the opposition as usual,” a statement by the AAP read.
The party through its statement added, “Earlier they have registered more than a hundred cases against our MLAs and ministers and each one has been dismissed in court. Satyendar Jain is a staunchly honest man and this case too will be dismissed outright.”
