NEW DELHI: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has lodged its first chargesheet in connection with a money-laundering investigation related to alleged irregularities at the Delhi Jal Board (DJB), as per official sources on Saturday.
The prosecution complaint was submitted by the federal agency to a special Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) court in Delhi on March 28.
The chargesheet names former DJB chief engineer Jagdish Kumar Arora, contractor Anil Kumar Agarwal, former NBCC general manager D K Mittal, Tejinder Singh, and NKG Infrastructure Limited as the accused.
The ED claims that bribe money linked to corruption in a DJB contract was funneled as election funds to the ruling Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) in Delhi. Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal was summoned for questioning in the case by the agency but did not appear for deposition. Kejriwal was arrested by the ED on March 21 in another money-laundering case connected to alleged irregularities in the excise policy for Delhi.
The ED conducted raids at the premises of Kejriwal’s personal assistant Bibhav Kumar, AAP’s Rajya Sabha MP N D Gupta, former DJB member Shalabh Kumar, chartered accountant Pankaj Mangal, and others in February as part of the probe.
The ED’s case is based on an FIR filed by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) which accuses Arora of awarding a DJB contract to NKG Infrastructure Limited for Rs 38 crore despite the company not meeting the technical eligibility criteria. Arora and Agarwal were arrested by the ED on January 31 in connection with the case.
The ED alleges that Arora received bribe money in cash and through bank accounts after awarding the contract to NKG Infrastructure Limited and passed it on to individuals managing DJB affairs, including those associated with AAP.
This is reportedly the second instance where AAP is accused of receiving kickbacks by the ED. The agency alleges that Rs 45 crore out of the total Rs 100 crore bribe money from the scrapped excise policy of 2021-22 was utilized by the Kejriwal-led party for campaigning in the Goa Assembly elections.
The ED asserts that the DJB contract was awarded at inflated rates to facilitate bribe collection from contractors. The agency alleges that only about Rs 17 crore out of the Rs 38 crore contract value was spent, with the remaining amount siphoned off through fake expenses, purportedly for bribes and election funds. Delhi minister Atishi has refuted the allegations at a press conference, stating that the case is an endeavor to tarnish the image of AAP and its leaders.
(With inputs from agencies)
The prosecution complaint was submitted by the federal agency to a special Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) court in Delhi on March 28.
The chargesheet names former DJB chief engineer Jagdish Kumar Arora, contractor Anil Kumar Agarwal, former NBCC general manager D K Mittal, Tejinder Singh, and NKG Infrastructure Limited as the accused.
The ED claims that bribe money linked to corruption in a DJB contract was funneled as election funds to the ruling Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) in Delhi. Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal was summoned for questioning in the case by the agency but did not appear for deposition. Kejriwal was arrested by the ED on March 21 in another money-laundering case connected to alleged irregularities in the excise policy for Delhi.
The ED conducted raids at the premises of Kejriwal’s personal assistant Bibhav Kumar, AAP’s Rajya Sabha MP N D Gupta, former DJB member Shalabh Kumar, chartered accountant Pankaj Mangal, and others in February as part of the probe.
The ED’s case is based on an FIR filed by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) which accuses Arora of awarding a DJB contract to NKG Infrastructure Limited for Rs 38 crore despite the company not meeting the technical eligibility criteria. Arora and Agarwal were arrested by the ED on January 31 in connection with the case.
The ED alleges that Arora received bribe money in cash and through bank accounts after awarding the contract to NKG Infrastructure Limited and passed it on to individuals managing DJB affairs, including those associated with AAP.
This is reportedly the second instance where AAP is accused of receiving kickbacks by the ED. The agency alleges that Rs 45 crore out of the total Rs 100 crore bribe money from the scrapped excise policy of 2021-22 was utilized by the Kejriwal-led party for campaigning in the Goa Assembly elections.
The ED asserts that the DJB contract was awarded at inflated rates to facilitate bribe collection from contractors. The agency alleges that only about Rs 17 crore out of the Rs 38 crore contract value was spent, with the remaining amount siphoned off through fake expenses, purportedly for bribes and election funds. Delhi minister Atishi has refuted the allegations at a press conference, stating that the case is an endeavor to tarnish the image of AAP and its leaders.
(With inputs from agencies)