Big jolt to Congress in Haryana: High Court asks ED, police to arrest MLA Dharam Singh Chhoker if...

The Punjab and Haryana High Court on Tuesday directed the Enforcement Directorate (ED) and Haryana Police to arrest Congress MLA Dharam Singh Chhoker if he fails to surrender within 24 hours. Chhoker, seeking re-election from the Samalkha constituency in the upcoming Haryana Assembly elections, is facing charges of money laundering and is being probed by the ED. The HC's order comes just fours days before the scheduled polling in Haryana. 

Chhoker, a close aide of former chief minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda, has been evading arrest despite a non-bailable warrant issued against him. His son, Sikander Singh, was arrested by the ED five months ago in connection with the same case.

The case came to the High Court following a petition filed by Virender Singh, who claimed that while Chhoker was wanted by the authorities, he continued to campaign for re-election. The petitioner alleged that despite social media evidence showing Chhoker’s ongoing campaign activities, he had not been arrested.

Last week, the court issued a notice to the ED and Haryana Police, asking for a response. On Tuesday, the court issued fresh directions for Chhoker's arrest if he does not surrender. 

The ED took over the case against Chhoker and his son in 2023, after the Gurgaon police filed an FIR alleging that the two were involved in a real estate fraud through their company, Mihira Group. The group had undertaken a project to construct affordable housing in Sector 68, Gurgaon, and collected around Rs 363 crore from 1,500 home buyers. The project was supposed to be completed by 2021-22, but the company allegedly failed to deliver and defrauded the buyers.

In July last year, the ED raided the Congress MLA, Sai Aaina Farms Pvt Ltd (now Mahira Infratech Pvt Ltd), and other companies of the Mahira Group. The agency seized four luxury cars, jewellery worth Rs 14.5 lakh and Rs 4.5 lakh in cash. Chhoker is stated to be the "owner and promoter" of the Mahira real estate group along with his sons Sikander Singh and Vikas Chhoker.

In a statement issued then, the central agency said that its investigation found that the entity (Sai Aaina Farms Pvt. Ltd.) siphoned off home buyers' money by booking fake construction expenditures in group entities. Cash equivalent to the fake purchases was received back from the entities providing fake bills/invoices by the directors and promoters of Mahira Group, which was used for personal gains, the agency alleged.

According to ED, several personal and family-linked expenditure was booked as construction and business expenditure in group entities. The directors/promoters also diverted homebuyers' money to other group entities as loans for personal gains and they "siphoned off" about Rs 107.5 crore (fake expenses to the extent of Rs 57 crore and loans to group entities to the extent of Rs 50.50 crore) from Sai Aaina Farms Pvt. Ltd. 

(With inputs from agencies)