ED attaches properties worth Rs 22.78 crore in tender scam

The Directorate of Enforcement Jalandhar has provisionally attached properties worth Rs 22.78 crore including those of former Congress minister Bharat Bhushan Ashu in a Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) case.

The case relates to a tender scam in the Department of Food, Civil Supplies and Consumer Affairs when Ashu was Minister for Food, Civil Supplies and Consumer Affairs, Punjab. The attached properties include his flat, a shop and some gold, the house of a department official and a mall owned by Rajdeep Nagra, an arhtiya and an aide of Ashu based in Khanna.

The properties are situated in Ludhiana, Mohali, Khanna and other parts of Punjab. Some movable assets in the form of FDRs, gold jewellery, bullions and bank accounts have also been attached in the case.

The ED on Friday also filed a chargesheet in the Special PMLA court in Jalandhar against Ashu, who had been arrested in the case on August 1. He is currently on judicial remand. His bail application is to be heard on October 3. His aide Nagra was arrested on September 4 and he too is lodged in jail.

The ED had initiated investigation on the basis of various FIRs registered by Vigilance Bureau, Punjab, under various Sections of IPC and Prevention of Corruption Act related to tender scam in the Department of Food and Civil Supplies.

ED investigation has revealed that Ashu favoured selected contractors in allotment of tenders and promised them higher profits, thereby collecting bribe from them through Rajdeep Singh Nagra, former Deputy Director Rakesh Kumar Singla (declared PO in the case) and other persons including a few government officers of Punjab Food and Civil Supplies Department. The bribe money was further laundered to purchase movable and immovable properties using network of shell entities. The ED had on August 24 and September 4 conducted two searches at 28 locations in different parts of Punjab.