NEW DELHI: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) carried out raids at 11 properties in Punjab as part of a money laundering investigation into the alleged illegal allotment of industrial plots by a state run corporation, the agency said on Thursday.
The federal probing agency said the raids, carried out from August 4 to 6 in Amritsar, Gurdaspur and Ludhiana, targeted officials of the Punjab Small Industries and Export Corporation (PSIEC) and their associates. The agency also conducted a survey at the corporation's office.
The agency initiated the investigation after taking cognisance of a police complaint filed by Punjab's Vigilance Bureau, accusing PSIEC officials and private individuals of corruption in the allotment of industrial plots, the ED said in a statement.
The investigators allege that plots intended for industrial use were awarded to applicants with no background in manufacturing or industry, often through fake companies and false addresses, in exchange for bribes paid to officials.
The ED said allottees were also able to delay taking possession of plots for years by exploiting a loophole that classified the delay as a "zero period", allowing them to defer payments without incurring interest.
Some plots were later illegally subdivided and converted for residential or commercial use, or resold to third parties through shell firms at market prices, generating what the agency described as substantial illicit proceeds.
The agency said it seized documents, digital devices and Rs 12,15,000 in unaccounted cash during the raids, and froze bank accounts holding about Rs 4.01 crore belonging to two retired PSIEC officials, Surinder Pal Singh and Jaswinder Singh Randhawa.
The ED said its investigation was continuing. There was no immediate comment from PSIEC or the named individuals.