ED Seizes 5 Properties of Ex-Punjab Official Valued at Rs 1.36 Crore?
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Jalandhar, Feb 12 (NationPress) The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has confiscated five properties valued at Rs 1.36 crore in a money laundering investigation involving a former official from the Punjab government's Food and Civil Supplies department, said an official on Thursday.
According to a representative from the ED's Jalandhar Zonal Office, the attached assets are associated with Rakesh Kumar Singla, who previously served as Deputy Director in the Food and Civil Supplies Department, and his spouse, Rachna Singla.
The properties were seized under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002, as part of a case concerning disproportionate assets, wherein Singla is accused of amassing assets worth Rs 1.36 crore.
The ED commenced its investigation following an FIR lodged by the Vigilance Punjab Police regarding this matter.
The investigation uncovered that Singla allegedly accepted bribes, which he used to accrue these disproportionate assets.
"These illicit gains were subsequently laundered by Singla, his wife, and their family members through deposits in their bank accounts and by orchestrating fictitious transactions from various individuals and entities, as well as investing in real estate," stated an ED release.
In a separate matter, the ED's Gurugram Zonal Office took action against a large-scale international Tech Support Scam targeting American citizens, provisionally attaching properties worth Rs 90.21 crore as of February 9.
The ED submitted a charge sheet on February 10 to a Special Court (PMLA) in Gurugram against eight individuals involved in this case, under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002, following the arrest of Chandra Prakash Gupta, a key conspirator in this incident.
The charge sheet filed pertains to Sections 44 and 45 of the PMLA for money laundering offenses as defined in Section 3, in conjunction with Section 70, and is punishable under Section 4 of the PMLA, 2002, involving CSPRO Technology (OPC) Private Limited, Chandra Prakash Gupta, and others, including Aakash Kumar Dubey, Pankaj Kumar Jha, and several employees.