The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Friday said it has seized cash worth Rs 11.88 crore deposited in the bank accounts of Chief Minister Hemant Soren's political representative Pankaj Mishra and others in connection with money laundering related to illegal mining in Jharkhand.
New Delhi: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Friday said it has seized cash worth Rs 11.88 crore deposited in the bank accounts of Chief Minister Hemant Soren's political representative Pankaj Mishra and others in connection with money laundering related to illegal mining in Jharkhand. The ED has taken this action after raids on at least 19 places in Sahibganj, Barhait, Rajmahal, Mirza Chowki and Barharwa in the state on July 8. The Enforcement Directorate (ED) had then seized several documents and unaccounted cash worth Rs 5.34 crore.
Rs 100 crore earned from illegal mining was also unearthed
In this case, the money deposited in the bank account of Pankaj Mishra, the political representative of Jharkhand CM Hemant Soren, has also been seized. "Cash worth Rs 11.88 crore deposited in 37 bank accounts of Pankaj Mishra, Dahu Yadav and their associates has been seized under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) in illegal mining case," the ED said in a statement. Five stone crushers being operated illegally and an equal number of firearms cartridges were also seized, the statement said.
The ED said, "Evidence gathered during the investigation including statements of individual persons, digital evidence and documents has revealed that large scale illegal mining is being carried out in Sahibganj area including the seized cash/bank balance forest area." received from." The ED said that during these raids, income of Rs 100 crore earned from alleged illegal mining was also unearthed.
IAS Pooja Singhal, who was mining secretary, was arrested
In May, the Enforcement Directorate raided Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer Pooja Singhal, her business husband and others as part of its ongoing money laundering probe. Singhal, who was holding the charge of Jharkhand's mining secretary, was suspended by the state government following her arrest by the ED. Suman Kumar, a chartered accountant (CA) associated with Singhal and her husband, was also arrested by the agency and a total cash amount of Rs 19.76 crore was seized.
The ED has filed a chargesheet against Singhal and others in the special PMLA court in Ranchi this month. "The evidence gathered during the investigation (against Singhal and others) has revealed that the bulk of the seized cash was obtained from illegal mining and belonged to senior bureaucrats and politicians," the ED said.