New Delhi: The Enforcement Directorate conducted raids this morning at various locations in Delhi, Chandigarh, and Varanasi as part of a money laundering investigation related to alleged irregularities in the Delhi Jal Board. Among those who were raided are Bibhav Kumar, the personal secretary of Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, Rajya Sabha MP ND Gupta, and former DJB member Shalabh Kumar. These raids took place just hours before a press conference by the AAP, where they claimed to have explosive information about the agency.
Later in the day, Delhi Minister Atishi spoke to reporters and accused the ED of carrying out these raids to intimidate her party. She stated that no evidence or money has been found so far, and that the ED is trying to build a case by pressuring individuals to sign false statements.
The raids are connected to an alleged scam in the Delhi Jal Board, with the ED’s investigation stemming from an FIR registered by the CBI and an Anti-Corruption Branch probe. The agency is currently looking into two separate instances of financial irregularities in the DJB’s tendering process.
It is important to note that last week, retired chief engineer Jagdish Kumar Arora and contractor Anil Kumar Aggarwal were arrested in connection with this case. Their ED custody has been extended for five more days by a special PMLA court.
In the past, the ED has also conducted raids in Delhi-NCR, Chennai, and Kerala in relation to similar alleged irregularities.