RANCHI: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Tuesday seized incriminating items, including fake Aadhars, illegal arms, property documents, and blank Performa forms for forging Aadhaar cards, during raids at 17 locations in Jharkhand and West Bengal linked to illegal Bangladeshi infiltration.
“So far various incriminating items including fake Aadhaars, forged passports, illegal arms, immovable property documents, cash, jewellery, printing papers, printing machines, and blank performa used for forging Aadhaar have been recovered,” stated a tweet posted at the official X handle of ED. ED, Ranchi is conducting searches at 17 locations under PMLA, 2002, in Jharkhand and West Bengal in connection with illegal Bangladeshi infiltration, it added.
According to ED sources, the raids are part of an ongoing money laundering probe linked to suspected Bangladeshi infiltration in Jharkhand on the basis of an FIR registered on June 4 at Bariatu police station in Ranchi. During the investigation, it was revealed that Bangladeshis are being illegally infiltrated into the country with the help of private agents and are being provided fake documents to establish Indian citizenship.
ED sources revealed that the ED team is searching six places, including Hotel Skyline and Ashvi Diagnosis at Bariatu in Ranchi. The hotel register was searched in the presence of ED officials.
Notably, three suspicious Bangladeshi girls were arrested from a resort under Bariatu police station in Ranchi identified as Nimpi Birua, Samreen Akhtar and Nipa Akhtar, all residents of Chittagong in Bangladesh. All three girls were brought to Kolkata with the help of another girl named Manisha Rai. During the police investigation, they told their names to the police as Payal Das, Anika Dutta and Khushi and were carrying fake Aadhar cards made in India with the same names.
On the basis of a police investigation, ED found this case worthy of investigation under the Money Laundering Act and registered a case (ECIR) in this regard.
The three girls, who were arrested by the police from Bali Resorts, were granted bail by the court on a personal bond of Rs 10,000 each on the condition that they would cooperate in the investigation of the case, but they could not be found when ED tried to reach out to them.
The ED’s action has come ahead of the first phase of the assembly elections in Jharkhand tomorrow.
According to sources, the ED is examining individuals and organisations suspected of illegal financial activities linked to cross-border infiltration. Tuesday’s raids seek to uncover further links and financial records in these money laundering networks which facilitate infiltration.
Several people involved in illegal activities relating to illegal infiltration, making fake Identity proofs which are criminal activities linked to proceeds of crime as per the definition provided under section 2 (1) (u) of the PMLA, 2002.
Notably, in its counter affidavit filed in the Jharkhand High Court in connection with a PIL seeking a probe on Bangladeshi intrusion and the changing demography of Santhal Pargana, Central Government has revealed that the tribal population in the region has decreased by 16 per cent. The Centre also informed the High Court that the Muslim population has increased by 20 to 40 per cent in six different districts of Santhal Pargana while the number of Christians in these areas has increased by 6000 times.
Interestingly, Deputy Commissioners of the six Santhal Pargana districts – Pakur, Sahibganj, Dumka, Godda, Deoghhar and Jamtara, in their affidavits filed earlier in the case had declared that no Bangladeshi intrusion had taken place in their districts. Expressing surprise over their denial of infiltration in the region, the court had warned the concerned DCs that if even a single infiltration is found in their districts, a contempt case will be initiated against them.
