ED arrests Punjab Minister Sanjeev Arora in PMLA money laundering case
Synopsis
The ED arrest of Punjab Cabinet Minister Sanjeev Arora — the third agency action on his premises in a year — has ignited a political firestorm, with Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann accusing the BJP of weaponising central agencies and the SAD demanding lookout notices against multiple officials.
Key Takeaways
The ED arrested Punjab Cabinet Minister Sanjeev Arora from his official Chandigarh residence on 9 May 2025.
The arrest followed a third round of searches at four premises under PMLA 2002.
SAD leader Bikram Singh Majithia linked the probe to Hampton Sky Realty and an alleged ₹100 crore fake GST racket involving Dubai fund transfers.
CM Bhagwant Mann accused the BJP of misusing the ED; AAP's Arvind Kejriwal echoed the charge.
Majithia demanded lookout circulars against OSD CM Rajbir Singh and three others linked to the alleged fraud.
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Saturday, 9 May arrested Sanjeev Arora, a Cabinet minister in the Bhagwant Mann-led Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government in Punjab, from his official residence in Sector 2, Chandigarh. The arrest followed extensive search operations at multiple premises linked to Arora under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002. As of the time of reporting, the ED had not issued any official statement confirming the arrest.
Background and Sequence of Raids
Saturday's operation marked the third ED raid on premises linked to Arora within a year. Since early Saturday morning, the agency conducted searches at four premises connected to the minister, including his official Chandigarh residence allotted to him as a Cabinet minister. A second round of raids had been conducted in April 2025, covering locations in Chandigarh and the Delhi-NCR region. The first set of searches, in 2024, was linked to an alleged money laundering case involving the conversion of industrial land for residential projects — at which point Arora was serving as a Rajya Sabha MP and was the legislator from Ludhiana (West).
Alleged GST Fraud and Hampton Sky Realty Link
Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) leader Bikram Singh Majithia claimed on X that the ED's probe is linked to Hampton Sky Realty Ltd and involves an alleged ₹100 crore fake GST mobile phone purchase and export racket, connected to money laundering and round-tripping of funds between Dubai and India. Majithia confirmed Arora's arrest in a post on X, stating:
Point of View
But that framing does not automatically invalidate the probe. The Hampton Sky Realty angle, the alleged Dubai round-tripping, and the ₹100 crore GST fraud claim are specific enough to warrant scrutiny independent of partisan noise. The real accountability test is whether Punjab's own state Vigilance — which the Akali Dal pointedly invokes — applies the same standard to ruling party figures as it does to the opposition.
NationPress
11 May 2026
Frequently Asked Questions
Why was Punjab minister Sanjeev Arora arrested by the ED?
Sanjeev Arora was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate on 9 May 2025 under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) following searches at four premises linked to him. The probe is reportedly connected to an alleged ₹100 crore fake GST mobile phone purchase and export racket and money laundering linked to Hampton Sky Realty Ltd.
How many times has the ED raided Sanjeev Arora's premises?
Saturday's operation was the third ED raid on premises linked to Arora within a year. Previous raids took place in 2024 — when a money laundering case involving alleged industrial-to-residential land conversion was the focus — and again in April 2025.
What did Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann say about the arrest?
CM Bhagwant Mann accused the BJP of misusing the ED, posting on X that the agency had visited Arora's home three times in a year without finding anything. He vowed that Punjab would not bow to what he called 'Modi's tactics'.
What is the Hampton Sky Realty connection in the ED probe?
SAD leader Bikram Singh Majithia alleged that the ED is probing Hampton Sky Realty Ltd in connection with an alleged ₹100 crore fake GST racket involving mobile phone purchases, exports, and round-tripping of funds from Dubai to India — all linked to money laundering.
Who else has been named in connection with the alleged fraud?
Majithia demanded immediate lookout circulars against OSD CM Rajbir Singh, Nitin Gohal, Birdevinder Singh, and Pritpal Singh Dhindsa, alleging their involvement in the GST fraud, illegal Dubai money transfers, and suspicious land dealings.
