ED Requests Court Approval to Question Saurabh Sharma and Associates in Jail
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Synopsis
On February 4, the Enforcement Directorate filed a request with a Bhopal district court to question former RTO Saurabh Sharma and his associates in connection with a disproportionate assets case. The court has scheduled a hearing for the ED's request.
Key Takeaways
- ED seeks court permission for interrogation.
- Saurabh Sharma and associates are in judicial custody.
- Multiple raids conducted by various agencies.
- Significant gold and cash recovered in the case.
- Sharma previously worked in the Transport Department.
Bhopal, Feb 4 (NationPress) The Enforcement Directorate (ED) submitted a petition to a district court in Bhopal on Tuesday, regarding the disproportionate assets case involving former RTO Saurabh Sharma and his two aides, requesting authorization to interrogate them.
In their petition, the ED requested the court's consent to question Saurabh Sharma along with his associates - Chetan Gaur and Sharad Jaiswal, who were remanded to judicial custody on Tuesday.
While the ED did not specify a precise date for their questioning, it asked the court for the flexibility to conduct the interrogation in jail as needed.
The district court designated for Lokayukta cases has scheduled a hearing for the ED's request. This application was submitted after the MP Lokayukta Police presented the trio in court following the conclusion of their seven-day police custody on Tuesday.
The court has ordered that the trio remain in judicial custody until February 17.
Significantly, in the past two and a half months, several agencies, including the Madhya Pradesh Lokayukta, Income Tax Department, and Enforcement Directorate, have executed raids at numerous sites in Bhopal, Gwalior, and Jabalpur.
The ED's action was initiated following a complaint from the MP Lokayukta Police against Sharma.
The MP Police reported that a case was registered against Sharma after confidential verification of complaints received by the ombudsman regarding his alleged corruption activities.
Consequently, multiple raids took place across various locations. The ED had previously questioned Sharma's wife and mother a day prior to his arrest by the MP Lokayukta Police in Bhopal on January 28.
The case gained further attention after the Income Tax Department discovered approximately 52 kg of gold and Rs 11 lakh in cash from an abandoned vehicle in a forest region of Bhopal on December 19.
Additionally, the Lokayukta Police have identified over 30 individuals, including Sharma's mother, wife, and other close relatives.
Sharma joined the Transport Department in 2016 as a constable on compassionate grounds following his father's passing in 2015. After a 12-year tenure, he opted for voluntary retirement in 2023, even as an inquiry against him was ongoing at that time.
