New Delhi. The Enforcement Directorate (ED) in Jharkhand capital Ranchi on Monday raided several places and seized a huge amount of cash from an alleged aide of state Rural Development Minister and Congress MLA Alamgir Alam. The video footage purportedly shows Alam’s personal secretary Sanjeev Lal keeping bundles of currency notes in a room at his residence. Meanwhile, Alam has issued a statement, asserting Lal’s status as a government official and emphasizing his reliance on experienced secretaries. The ED investigation is ongoing and Alam has refrained from commenting until an impartial conclusion is reached.
Meanwhile, the BJP has attacked the Congress, demanding Alam’s immediate arrest and strict inquiry in connection with the cash seizure, citing a pattern of involvement in black money transactions. BJP spokesperson Pratul Shahdev said that the recent recovery of cash proves Congress’s involvement in corrupt practices. He stressed the need for immediate custody of Alam and a thorough investigation by ED to uncover the source of funds.
Meanwhile, ED officials were surprised by the huge amount of currency found, which required the use of counting machines. Additionally, some documents have emerged that show that these funds were generated through commissions in transfer-posting transactions.
The matter is related to Chief Engineer Virendra Ram appointed in the Ministry of Rural Development. The ED initiated a case under money laundering charges and Ram was arrested in February 2023 for admitting to accepting commission ranging from 0.3% to 1%. These commissions were received in return for awarding road construction and other tender contracts. Apart from this, the ED has attached assets worth crores of rupees suspecting Ram’s involvement in embezzlement of commission from tenders worth billions of rupees. There are concerns that even after his arrest, Ram may still be linked to a tender racket worth billions.