Srinagar: ED attaches Rs 36 cr assets of 2 health insurance firms
Srinagar, January 18
The Enforcement Directorate on Thursday said it has attached fixed deposits and a land worth more than Rs 36.57 crore belonging to two companies — Reliance General Insurance Private Limited (RGIPL) and Trinity Reinsurance Brokers Private Limited (TRBL) — as part of a money laundering probe linked to an alleged insurance scam in Jammu and Kashmir.
The ED says it has attached land worth Rs 4.04 crore in the name M/s Globus Trade Links Pvt. Ltd., a subsidiary of M/s TRBL and FDRs to the extent of value of Rs 32.53 crore, pertaining to M/s Reliance General Insurance Private Limited.
The probe relates to the ‘fraudulent’ awarding of tender of mediclaim insurance policy for the J&K government employee, PSU’s employees and pensioners fraudulently to M/s Reliance General Insurance Pvt. Ltd. by Finance Department, J&K, in collusion with TRBL, an insurance broker.
The complaint was filed by the General Administrative Department, UT of J&K.
During the investigation, the ED says, it found the Finance Department, government of Jammu &Kashmir, deliberately awarded the tender for engagement of intermediary (Insurance Broker) without holding the essential eligibility criteria.
The investigation revealed that J&K Finance Department ‘deliberately’ awarded the tender for engagement of intermediary for designing, floating the tender for and implementation of the health scheme of J&K by ‘dubious or questionable’ selection and shortlisting process to the TRBL without holding the essential eligibility criteria, the ED alleged.
“The tender for engagement of IRDAl registered insurance company was awarded through M/s TRBL to the said insurance company which was already blacklisted by the Chhattisgarh government by modification and deletion of essential eligibility criteria even though the company had less presence in J&K and bare minimum experience, as pre requirement of the tender, during the stipulated period,” the ED said.
Despite having a limited presence in J&K and minimal experience, the insurance company was awarded the tender. This goes against the pre-requirements specified in the tender during the stipulated period, the ED said.
Graft allegations
The ED case of money laundering stems from a CBI FIR that was filed after former Jammu and Kashmir Governor Satyapal Malik had claimed that he was offered bribes to clear files, including for awarding contracts for a group medical insurance scheme for government employees
