'The present case is a classic case of how the ruling party led central government has misused the central agency- Enforcement Directorate and its wide powers under PMLA to crush its biggest political opponent -Aam Aadmi Party and its leaders'
Christian Michel James, an alleged middleman in the AgustaWestland case, has claimed that attempts were made to poison him inside Tihar Jail. A Delhi court has sought a response from the prison authorities on his plea. The court has also directed that James be taken to AIIMS on April 7 for a check-up. James was extradited from Dubai in 2018 and has been in custody since then. He has been granted bail in the ED and CBI cases against him but has refused to accept bail citing security concerns. He has also alleged that he was subjected to an incident at AIIMS, the details of which he is willing to share with the court in private. The court has ordered James to furnish a personal bond and surety of Rs 10 lakh in both cases and surrender his passport. The CBI chargesheet claims an estimated loss of 398.21 million euros (about Rs 2,666 crore) to the exchequer due to the deal for the supply of VVIP choppers. The ED chargesheet filed against James alleged he received 30 million euros (about Rs 225 crore) from AgustaWestland.
'They want to keep the pot boiling all the time.' 'The BJP wants to set a political narrative that the Gandhis are doing wrong things.'
BJP Tamil Nadu president K Annamalai and many party functionaries were detained by police in Chennai on Monday ahead of a protest against alleged irregularities in state-run liquor retailer TASMAC. The BJP had planned to picket the TASMAC headquarters over alleged Rs 1,000 crore irregularities, as claimed by the Enforcement Directorate (ED). Annamalai was detained near his house along with his supporters, and senior party leaders including Tamilisai Soundararajan were placed "under house arrest" by the police. The ED had earlier said it found "multiple irregularities" in TASMAC operations, including "manipulation" in tender processes and "unaccounted" cash transactions worth Rs 1,000 crore.
Searches conducted by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) under the anti-money laundering law rose by 86 times while arrests and attachment of assets jumped by around 25 times in the 10 years since 2014 compared to the preceding nine-year period, according to official data.
Over the years, with some amount of experimenting, I have learnt exactly what freezes well and what does not.
Sources said that the footage was recorded in video-only format during interrogation as the CCTV system did not have audio recording facility at the time. Audio recordings were added to the video capturing system of the ED interrogation process only in October last year, sources said.
The agency made the disclosure in a chargesheet filed by it on May 10 against former Telangana chief minister and Bharat Rashtra Samithi leader K Chandrashekar Rao's MLC daughter K Kavitha and four others.
The federal agency had arrested 46-year-old Kavitha, the daughter of former Telangana chief minister K Chandrashekar Rao, from her Banjara hills residence in Hyderabad on March 15.
A major fire broke out in a building housing an electronics goods showroom in the suburban Bandra area in the early hours of Tuesday, prompting the deployment of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) for firefighting operations. While no injuries were reported, the building adjacent to the affected structure was evacuated as a precaution. The fire, classified as Level IV (major), started around 4.10 am in a multistorey building on Linking Road in Bandra (west). The blaze initially confined to the basement later spread to the upper floors, engulfing the building in smoke. Thick black smoke was visible from afar, and photographs and videos of the blaze surfaced on social media. Around 6.25 am, the fire brigade classified the blaze as Level IV, indicating a major fire requiring extensive firefighting operations. Mumbai Fire Brigade chief Ravindra Ambulgekar and other senior officers rushed to the spot, with at least 13 fire engines and other firefighting vehicles deployed to douse the blaze. Other agencies have also been mobilized, and the cause of the fire remains under investigation. This is the second major early-morning blaze in Mumbai in two days, following a fire at the Enforcement Directorate (ED) office in Ballard Estate on Sunday.
Kharge claimed that the Centre accepted "intelligence failure" in an all-party meeting and said it should be held accountable for "not reinforcing" security arrangements in Kashmir to protect people.
A bench of Justices Abhay S Oka and Ujjal Bhuyan said when an accused appears before a court in pursuance of a summons, the agency will have to apply to the court concerned to get his custody.
The Enforcement Directorate has taken cognisance of Delhi minister Atishi's statement that Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal sent her directions from the agency's custody to initiate public welfare works related to water and sewerage, official sources said on Sunday.
A court in New Delhi on Thursday extended the Enforcement Directorate custody of Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal till April 1, saying the agency provided 'sufficient reasons', such as the need for him to be confronted with material collected and statements recorded, to permit his further custodial interrogation.
"The Enforcement Directorate had prayed for seven days' remand, which we vehemently opposed. The ED was granted five days' remand," Advocate General Rajeev Ranjan told reporters.
The project was allegedly awarded to contractors linked with AAP.
The first batch of women cadets joined the NDA's 148th course in 2022 after the UPSC (Union Public Service Commission) allowed women to apply to the defence academy following a Supreme Court direction in 2021.
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has attached 8.86 acres of land in Ranchi allegedly owned by former Jharkhand chief minister Hemant Soren as part of a money laundering investigation against him and his associates, the federal agency said on Thursday.
The Enforcement Directorate has questioned Niranjan Hiranandani, the promoter of prominent Mumbai-based realty company Hiranandani Group, in a foreign exchange violation case, official sources said Monday. Niranjan Hiranandani and his son Darshan Hiranandani were asked to join the investigation by the central agency at its office here as part of a probe being conducted under the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA).
The Enforcement Directorate has issued two summons to Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal to appear for questioning on March 18 and 21, official sources said Sunday.
The Enforcement Directorate has issued fresh summons to Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, asking him to appear before it on February 26 for questioning in the excise policy linked money laundering case, official sources said Thursday.
The federal probe agency obtained these receipts from two Ranchi-based dealers and attached those to its charge sheet filed against the 48-year-old Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) leader and four others last month.
RJD president Lalu Prasad has expelled his elder son, Tej Pratap Yadav, from the party for six years for "irresponsible behavior" and snapped all family ties with him. The decision comes after a viral Facebook post claimed that Yadav, a former Bihar minister, was "in a relationship" with a young woman.
Kejriwal has so far skipped multiple summonses of the ED, calling them illegal and asking the agency to wait as the matter was in court.
The agency may also inform the court about its requirement to confront Kejriwal with other arrested accused and witnesses including Bharat Rashtra Samiti leader K Kavitha, arrested last week, once they get his custody.
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has filed a money-laundering case against Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan's daughter Veena Vijayan and her IT firm for receiving 'illegal payments' from a Kochi-based private firm, official sources said on Wednesday.
Aam Aadmi Party MLA Amanatullah Khan was questioned by the Enforcement Directorate on Thursday for more than 13 hours in connection with a money laundering case linked to alleged irregularities in the Delhi Waqf Board under his chairmanship, officials said.
The Delhi high court granted bail to alleged middleman Christian Michel James in the Rs 3,600-crore AgustaWestland money laundering case on Tuesday. Justice Swarana Kanta Sharma, while granting the reprieve to James, said it was an "exceptional situation" where the accused was in custody for over 6.2 years but the trial had not yet commenced due to incomplete investigation. James, who was extradited from Dubai in December 2018, can now walk out of prison subject to compliance with the conditions.
The attached properties include 14 assets of Tuteja worth Rs 15.82 crore, 115 properties of Anwar Dhebar, the elder brother of Raipur Mayor and Congress leader Aijaz Dhebar, worth Rs 116.16 crore, properties of Vikash Agarwal alias Subbu worth Rs 1.54 crore and 33 properties of Arvind Singh worth Rs 12.99 crore, it said in a statement.
The 49-year-old Trinamool Congress leader was called for questioning twice earlier by the central agency, but she did not depose citing official work and sought deferment of the notice.
The Pandya brothers have come a long way. There was a time when they survived on just Maggi noodles for three years while chasing their dream of becoming top cricketers. Today, Hardik's net worth exceeds 100 crores while Krunal's is estimated to be around 80 crores.
National Conference (NC) president Farooq Abdullah did not appear before the Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Thursday for questioning in a money laundering case, official sources said.
The Aam Aadmi Party termed the summons "illegal" and accused the BJP government at the Centre of using the ED to target Kejriwal.
A bench of Justices Sanjiv Khanna and Dipankar Datta is likely to hear the matter.
The Enforcement Directorate said it has no objection if the AAP leader Sanjay Singh is given bail in the case.
Gahlot says he has no knowledge of Nair living in his official accommodation, AAP's Goa activities
The Enforcement Directorate on Tuesday said it has attached over a dozen properties worth Rs 12.78 crore of suspended Trinamool Congress leader Shajahan Sheikh including bank deposits, an apartment, and agricultural and fishery land in Sandeshkhali and Kolkata in West Bengal.
Overall this is the eighth charge sheet filed by the ED in this case in which it has arrested 18 people so far. Last week, a similar complaint was filed by the agency against BRS leader and former Telangana chief minister Chandrashekar Rao's daughter K Kavitha and four others.
Moitra, who was expelled from the Lok Sabha in December for "unethical conduct", has been renominated by her party from West Bengal's Krishnanagar seat in the upcoming Lok Sabha polls.
Alamgir Alam had distanced himself from the activities of Lal while speaking to reporters after the ED raids, pointing out that he had earlier served with other ministers of the state government too.