The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Tuesday, 7 June, said it has seized Rs 2.82 crore of cash and 133 gold coins weighing 1.80 kg from the premises of arrested Delhi Health Minister Satyendar Jain and his aides during day-long raids on Monday.
The ED said that those raided "either directly or indirectly assisted (the minister) or participated in the process of money laundering." The cash and coins were "unexplained" and were kept in a "secret" place, it said in a statement. Various incriminating documents and digital records were also recovered, the agency said.
"ED has conducted searches on 6.6.2022 under PMLA, 2002 at the premises of Satyendar Kumar Jain and others. Various incriminating documents, digital records, cash amounting to Rs. 2.85 crore and 133 gold coins weighing 1.80 kg in total from unexplained source have been seized," the central agency tweeted, sharing images of the material recovered during the raids.
The ED had conducted searches at about seven premises, including that of a jeweller, in Delhi and some neighbouring locations on Monday.
The agency said those raided include Jain's wife Poonam Jain, his business associates Ankush Jain and Vaibhav Jain, Naveen Jain, and Siddharth Jain (directors of Ram Prakash Jewellers Pvt Ltd), G S Matharoo (chairman of Lala Sher Singh Jivan Vigyan Trust which runs Prudence group of schools), Yogesh Kumar Jain (director in Ram Prakash Jewellers Pvt Ltd), father-in-law of Ankush Jain and Lala Sher Singh Jivan Vigyan Trust.
Meanwhile, BJP leader Shehzad Poonawalla was quoted as saying by ANI, "The recovery of Rs 2.82 crore & 133 gold coins is proof of his (Satyendar Jain) honesty. CM Arvind Kejriwal who claims to be the most honest, has not yet been able to take the resignation of his health minister turned 'hawalaat minister'."
'Lie on Lie': Kejriwal
Reacting to the ED's announcement on Tuesday, Delhi Chief Minister and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader Arvind Kejriwal tweeted, "At this time, the prime minister is with full force behind the Aam Aadmi Party - especially the governments of Delhi and Punjab. Lie on lie, lie on lie. You have the power of all agencies, but God is with us."AAP MP Sanjay Singh
Stating that nothing was recovered after interrogating Jain, AAP MP Sanjay Singh said the ED carried out the raid to hide "international insult" India is facing.
"Interrogation with Delhi Minister Satyendar Jain was done, but nothing was recovered. ED could find no corruption. When asked in High Court, they said there's no FIR against Satyendar Jain; Why was he arrested then? ED raid done to hide international insult India is facing," Singh said, as per news agency ANI.
Singh's comments carry an allusion to a series of Islamic nations demanding an apology from India for the remarks of two Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leaders about Prophet Muhammad.
Meanwhile, AAP MLA Saurabh Bhardwaj claimed, "The seizure memo of the ED raid was given to the wife and daughter of Satyendar Jain. In the memo, it was mentioned that various documents, one digital device, and Rs 2,79,200 was recovered during the search. However the same were not seized."
The Case Against Satyendar Jain
This comes after the ED, in April this year, had provisionally attached immovable properties worth Rs 4.81 crore belonging to companies allegedly linked to Jain and his relatives under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002. The properties belonging to Akinchan Developers Pvt Ltd, Indo Metal Impex Pvt Ltd, Paryas Infosolutions Pvt Ltd, Manglayatan Projects Pvt Ltd, JJ Ideal Estate Pvt Ltd, and others were attached in the case.
"Enforcement Directorate (ED), after initiating a money-laundering probe against Delhi Minister Satyendar Jain on the basis of an FIR registered by CBI, provisionally attached immovable properties worth Rs 4.81 crore belonging to his family and firms, under PMLA 2002," the ED had said then.
The ED said that its probe had revealed that during the period from 2015-16, the companies owned and controlled by Jain received accommodation entries of nearly Rs 4.81 crore from shell companies against cash transferred to Kolkata-based entry operators through the "hawala route."
"These amounts were utilised for direct purchase of land or for the repayment of loan taken for the purchase of agricultural land in and around Delhi," the ED had said.
The CBI said that before becoming a public servant, the Delhi minister was allegedly involved in laundering Rs 11.78 crore through companies based in New Delhi from 2010-12.
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