Punjab foodgrain scam: ED arrests former minister Bharat Bhushan Ashu’s aide in Khanna
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on September 5 arrested Rajdeep Singh Nagra, an aide of former Punjab food and civil supplies and consumer affairs minister Bharat Bhushan Ashu, in connection with the foodgrain transportation scam case.
- Sep 5, 2024,
- Updated Sep 5, 2024 5:43 PM IST
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on September 5 arrested Rajdeep Singh Nagra, an aide of former Punjab food and civil supplies and consumer affairs minister Bharat Bhushan Ashu, in connection with the foodgrain transportation scam case.
The agency had arrested former minister Bharat Bhushan Ashu on August 1 in connection with the case, who continues to remain in jail. Ashu (53) was taken into custody after questioning at the zonal office of the ED.
The former minister is accused of being involved in multi-crore Punjab foodgrain transportation and labour cartage tenders scam during his tenure as Punjab’s food and civil supplies minister during the previous Congress government.
According to reports, the scam amounts to Rs 2,000 crore and was first unearthed by the Punjab Vigilance Bureau which subsequently arrested Ashu in August 2022.
The ED had initiated a parallel probe into the money trail under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) after the Punjab Vigilance Bureau (VB) registered an FIR on August 16, 2022.
In August last year, ED teams seized Rs 6 crore and four bank lockers during raids at locations linked to Ashu and other accomplices besides seizing incriminating documents, digital devices and Rs 30 lakh of unaccounted cash from 10 locations, according to reports.
The ED, after Ashu's arrest, had alleged that the former minister laundered the "proceeds of crime" through several shell entities and purchased properties in his name and name of his family members.
The Congress had condemned Ashu's arrest, saying it was "vendetta" politics.
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on September 5 arrested Rajdeep Singh Nagra, an aide of former Punjab food and civil supplies and consumer affairs minister Bharat Bhushan Ashu, in connection with the foodgrain transportation scam case.
The agency had arrested former minister Bharat Bhushan Ashu on August 1 in connection with the case, who continues to remain in jail. Ashu (53) was taken into custody after questioning at the zonal office of the ED.
The former minister is accused of being involved in multi-crore Punjab foodgrain transportation and labour cartage tenders scam during his tenure as Punjab’s food and civil supplies minister during the previous Congress government.
According to reports, the scam amounts to Rs 2,000 crore and was first unearthed by the Punjab Vigilance Bureau which subsequently arrested Ashu in August 2022.
The ED had initiated a parallel probe into the money trail under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) after the Punjab Vigilance Bureau (VB) registered an FIR on August 16, 2022.
In August last year, ED teams seized Rs 6 crore and four bank lockers during raids at locations linked to Ashu and other accomplices besides seizing incriminating documents, digital devices and Rs 30 lakh of unaccounted cash from 10 locations, according to reports.
The ED, after Ashu's arrest, had alleged that the former minister laundered the "proceeds of crime" through several shell entities and purchased properties in his name and name of his family members.
The Congress had condemned Ashu's arrest, saying it was "vendetta" politics.