ED recovers huge amount of ‘unaccounted’ cash from domestic help allegedly linked to Jharkhand Minister’s secretary
During searches at the home of a domestic helper purportedly connected to a minister’s secretary in Jharkhand, the Enforcement Directorate declared on Monday that it had found a substantial quantity of “unaccounted” cash, according to official sources.
The central probe agency’s employees were seen in pictures and videos released by the sources extracting wads of cash from big bags in a room. There were also a few central force security officers seen.
According to rumors, Sanjiv Lal, the personal secretary of Jharkhand Rural Development Minister Alamgir Alam, is the owner of the premises.
According to ED sources, the money was being tallied to determine the precise quantity, which might be in the range of Rs 20–30 crore. According to the sources, the most of the cash was found to be in the amount of Rs 500, and some jewellery was also found.
Alam (70) is a Congress leader who sits in the Jharkhand assembly, representing the Pakur seat.
The searches are linked to a money laundering case against the former chief engineer of the rural development department, Veerendra Kumar Ram, who was arrested by the ED last year.
The agency had claimed in a statement released last year in April that Veerendra Kumar Ram, who was employed as chief engineer in the Rural Works Department in Ranchi, had generated proceeds of crime in the name of commission from contractors in lieu of awarding them tenders after it had attached the officer’s assets worth Rs 39 crore.
“The proceeds of crime thus generated were used by Veerendra Kumar Ram and his family members to live a very lavish lifestyle,” claimed the statement.
The Jharkhand anti-corruption bureau (ACB) filed a complaint that led to the money laundering investigation against Ram.