ED arrests Haryana Congress MLA's son in money-laundering case

PTI

New Delhi, April 30

The Enforcement Directorate on Tuesday arrested Haryana Congress MLA Dharam Singh Chokker's son Sikander Singh in a money-laundering case linked to the alleged cheating of home buyers' funds, official sources said.

Sikander Singh was taken into custody under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), they said.

Chokker, 60, an MLA from Samalkha in Panipat, is stated to be the "owner and promoter" of the Mahira real estate group along with his sons Sikander Singh and Vikas Chokker.

The ED had conducted searches against the legislator, Sai Aaina Farms Pvt Ltd (now Mahira Infratech Pvt Ltd), other companies of the Mahira Group and some others in July last year.

The money-laundering case stems from an FIR filed by the Gurugram Police against Sai Aaina Farms Pvt Ltd for "cheating and forgery" as it is alleged to have collected about Rs 360 crore from 1,497 home buyers under the affordable housing scheme on the promise of providing dwelling units in Sector 68 of Gurugram near Delhi, the ED had said in a statement.

However, it added, that Sai Aaina Farms Pvt Ltd "failed" to deliver the houses and "missed" multiple deadlines.

"The home buyers have been holding protests/dharnas for the past one year against the Mahira Group seeking delivery of the promised houses at the earliest," the agency said.

The ED had then alleged that Chokker, his sons and other key employees remained "absent" during the searches.

Probe found that Sai Aaina Farms Pvt Ltd "siphoned off" home buyers' money by booking fake construction expenditure in group entities.

Cash equivalent to the fake purchases was received back from the entities providing fake bills and invoices by the directors and promoters of Mahira Group, which was used for personal gains, the agency alleged.

It said several personal and family-linked expenditures were booked as construction and business expenditures in group entities.

The directors and promoters also "diverted" the home buyers' money to other group entities as loans (which is outstanding for years) for personal gains. Preliminary investigations show that 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 50.5 crore) from Sai Aaina Farms Pvt Ltd.

These funds belonged to the home buyers of Sector 68 housing project, it said.

The agency said its investigation with respect to the financial transactions of four other affordable housing projects being undertaken by the group promoted by Chokker is in progress and freezing orders in respect of offices and bank accounts of the Mahira Group were issued during the searches.

Four luxury cars (having acquisition value of about Rs 4 crore), jewellery worth Rs 14.5 lakh, Rs 4.5 lakh in cash and "evidences related to siphoning off of home buyers’ funds" were seized during the July 2023 raids, according to the ED. 

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