AHMEDABAD: Senior officials in Gujarat’s Surendranagar district came under scrutiny on Tuesday after the Enforcement Directorate (ED) launched a coordinated, multi-location search operation, triggering ripples across the local administration and signalling the seriousness and breadth of the probe.
ED teams fanned out across Surendranagar and Wadhwan early in the day, carrying out synchronised searches aimed at senior Class-I officers.
One team searched the official bungalow of Surendranagar District Collector Dr Rajendrakumar Patel, a 2015-batch IAS officer, while another simultaneously entered the residence of Deputy Mamlatdar Chandrasinh Mori in Wadhwan’s Rawalwas area, leaving little room for delay or information leakage.
The operation was conducted under tight security, underscoring the sensitivity of the case and the seniority of the officials involved.
More than eight ED vehicles were deployed on the ground, with local police forming a tight security cordon to prevent any disruption as officials moved in and out of the premises.
“Adequate police force was deployed to maintain law and order and ensure the operation proceeded smoothly without any untoward incident,” a senior police officer said, adding that security arrangements had been made well in advance due to the involvement of senior officers.
According to sources, ED officials spent several hours inside the collector’s bungalow examining documents, official records and other materials, meticulously tracing financial trails that could point to undisclosed assets or irregular transactions.
Almost in parallel, another ED team carried out an equally detailed search at Deputy Mamlatdar Mori’s residence, scrutinising property-related papers and financial documents as part of the same investigation.
As the searches progressed, unease spread through government offices in the district, with the early-morning action against a serving district collector sending a clear signal that no rank was beyond scrutiny.
By afternoon, the scope of the operation widened, with ED teams extending searches to the offices of contractors and advocates in the town, indicating a possible network of links connected to the alleged financial irregularities.
While the ED has maintained silence on the exact trigger for the operation, officials familiar with the inquiry said the searches are linked to suspected financial irregularities and possible illegal or undisclosed transactions. Investigators are now working to establish links between government officials and private entities.
There has been no official word so far on seizures, arrests or the next course of action. However, officials confirmed that a detailed assessment of the documents and materials recovered is underway, after which the ED is expected to decide on further legal steps, keeping Surendranagar and wider administrative circles in Gujarat on edge.