The federal agency is conducting raids at around eight places in Ranchi and adjoining areas and several places in Kolkata, including the premises belonging to arrested businessman Amit Agarwal.
The federal agency is conducting raids at around eight places in Ranchi and adjoining areas and several places in Kolkata, including the premises belonging to arrested businessman Amit Agarwal.
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Friday raided a dozen places in West Bengal and Jharkhand as part of a money laundering probe into the alleged use of forged papers for sale of defense land in these states. Officials gave this information.
The federal agency is conducting searches at around eight places in Ranchi and adjoining areas and several places in Kolkata, including premises linked to arrested businessman Amit Agarwal.
He said that some real estate dealers, private persons and linked entities are being searched by the ED teams.
An ED official said that the employees working under Mr. Agarwal are also being questioned.
He said, “At Agarwal’s office in Nonapukur in the southern part of Kolkata, two close associates of the businessman were questioned for over an hour to find out if we had any other properties in West Bengal apart from the raids. ,” They said. Raids are also being conducted at the office of another businessman linked to Mr. Agarwal in the posh Salt Lake area, the official said.
“We started the raid at 6.40 am today. Search is still on. Our detectives are questioning Mr. Agarwal’s staff inside his office. Some of our officers have clues about Mr. Agarwal’s apartment and his high-end vehicle. Looking for,” he said. told PTI.
He said the probe stemmed from the FIR filed by the Jharkhand Police to probe the alleged use of forged papers in the sale and purchase of defense land.
Mr Agarwal was arrested by the ED last month on charges of alleged conspiracy to “implicate” advocate Rajiv Kumar, representing one of the petitioners in two PILs filed against Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren.
The case also pertains to the alleged illegal mining case being probed by the ED, in which it had recently summoned Mr Soren and arrested one of his associates and two others.