The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Friday attached assets of Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leader Eknath Khadse and others worth more than Rs 5 crores in connection with a money laundering case.
As per the official statement by the law enforcement agency, it informed, "ED has attached properties of former BJP and now NCP leader Eknath Khadse, his wife Mandakini Khadse and son-in-law Girish Chaudhary in connection with the money laundering case registered against the three."
Chaudhary was arrested by ED and is in judicial custody at present while Khadse has been questioned twice by the agency in the Pune, Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation (MIDC) land money laundering case against the three.
The total attachment made by ED is of around Rs 5.73 crores, this includes a bungalow in Lonavala, three land parcels in Jalgaon and three flats in the Jalgaon district of Maharashtra.
The properties are in name of the three accused -- Eknath Khadse, Mandakini Khadse and Girish Chaudhary.
Earlier, Eknath Khadse's son-in-law Girish Choudhary was remanded to Enforcement Directorate custody till July 19 in this money laundering case.
During a money-laundering investigation, it was revealed that Girish with the connivance of others knowingly entered into a sale deed to acquire the said land despite the land belonging to Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation (MIDC) to avail compensation that was more than 2.5 to 3 times of the actual value of the land.
Further, it is also revealed that the land was registered at a much lower rate that is, only at Rs 3.75 crores against the prevailing value of Rs 31 crore. During the investigation, it was found that the accused claimed the source of the fund to purchase the said property as loan from some companies. However, it is revealed that these funds were layered and routed through shell companies, which are either dysfunctional or struck off later on.
Further investigation is in progress.
( With inputs from ANI )
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