'Extortion, illegal mining': ED raids at 8 premises linked to Jharkhand ex-minister 

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) is conducting search and survey operations at multiple locations in Jharkhand in connection with a money laundering investigation against former state minister Yogendra Sao, his family members, and associates.

According to the officials, the raids are being conducted at at least locations in Hazaribagh and Ranchi.

The current investigation under the PMLA pertains to the generation of substantial proceeds of crime through activities such as extortion, illegal sand mining, and land grabbing.

Even last year, the probe agency had raided multiple locations in the state while investigating a money laundering case against Sao's daughter and MLA Amba Prasad.

Sao, a former Agriculture Minister of the state, has multiple cases against him and has also been convicted in the 2015 Barkagaon shootout case where several people were shot dead during the ‘Kafan Satyagraha’ organized by Yogendra Sao and his wife Nirmala Devi, along with the local residents in the Barkagaon village against the proposal of a mining plant by the NTPC.