NEW DELHI: National Conference Lok Sabha MP and former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Farooq Abdullah will present himself before the Enforcement Directorate (ED) on May 31 in connection with an alleged money laundering case linked to financial irregularities in the J&K Cricket Association.
According to ED officials, Abdullah recorded his statement in the case three years ago. The National Conference (NC), which Abdullah heads, said the 84-year-old leader will continue to cooperate with the ED as he “has in the past”.
“ED summons to JKNC president Dr Farooq Abdullah nothing new; this is common for all opposition parties in India. He has continued to maintain his innocence in the matter and has cooperated with the investigative agencies and will do so in this case as well,” the NC posted on Twitter.
PDP president Mehbooba Mufti said “it was crystal clear that the voice of the opposition was being muzzled with the help of central probe agencies like the CBI and the Enforcement Directorate (ED)”. The ED has questioned Abdullah in connection with the multi-crore JKCA scam case in the past.
It was earlier alleged that the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) had given `112 crore to the JKCA for promoting cricket in the erstwhile state between 2011 and 2012 and that `46.30 crore from that grant was misappropriated.
Two cricketers — Majid Yaqoob Dar and Nissar Ahmad Khan — filed a PIL in the Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh High Court in 2015. Subsequently, the case was handed over to the CBI to probe alleged embezzlement of funds at JKCA headed by Abdullah at that time. Last year, the CBI filed a chargesheet in a Srinagar court against Abdullah and others accused in the case. Abdullah’s assets worth `11.86 crore were attached in 2020.