ED attaches over Rs 7.44 crore assets in benami probe against Satyendar Jain

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Tuesday said it has attached a fresh set of assets worth Rs 7.44 crore of companies "beneficially owned and controlled" by AAP leader and former Delhi minister Satyendar Jain as part of a money-laundering investigation.

The federal probe agency said in a statement that it has issued a provisional order under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) on September 15 to attach the immovable properties.

The probe pertains to an alleged case of possession of benami assets and a separate instance of holding disproportionate assets against Jain, his wife Poonam Jain and others. The money-laundering case stems from a CBI FIR and chargesheet.

Jain is accused of "acquiring" disproportionate assets while working as a minister in the Delhi government between February 14, 2015 and May 31, 2017.

The ED had attached assets worth Rs 4.81 crore of Jain in 2022.

The fresh attachment came after the Delhi High Court recently held that Jain's close associates -- Ankush Jain and Vaibhav Jain -- were the politician's "benami holders" and they deposited Rs 7.44 crore in cash in Bank of Baroda, Bhogal Branch, as advance tax under the Income Disclosure Scheme, 2016.