The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Monday conducted searches at the residence of Trinamool Congress Rajya Sabha MP Nadimul Haque and six other locations across Delhi, West Bengal and Jharkhand as part of a money laundering investigation involving Urdu newspaper Akhbar-E-Mashriq.
The ED’s Kolkata zonal office is carrying out searches at seven premises in Kolkata, Delhi and Ranchi in connection with a case against Akhbar-E-Mashriq Pvt Ltd, its director Mohd Nadimul Haque, and others.
The searches began early on Monday and are being conducted in coordination with security and state police forces. The operation covers the TMC MP’s residence, the newspaper’s office and other premises linked to the case. The searches were continuing at the time of reporting.
According to officials, the Enforcement Case Information Report (ECIR) was registered by the ED on the basis of an FIR filed by the Bidhannagar Police Commissionerate in West Bengal.
The case involves allegations that material published and disseminated by the newspaper promoted communal disharmony. The FIR also contains allegations of illegal transactions, unaccounted cash dealings and the receipt of funds from suspicious sources, officials said.
The ED’s investigation is focused on tracing the alleged proceeds of crime and establishing the financial trail linked to the transactions under scrutiny.
During Monday’s searches, the agency is examining financial records and collecting documentary and digital evidence relating to the entities and individuals named in the case.
Further details on any evidence recovered during the searches and the ED’s next course of action are awaited.
The investigation is being conducted under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), as the agency examines suspected proceeds of crime and their alleged movement through financial transactions involving the individuals and entities under investigation.
(With inputs from ANI)