The Enforcement Directorate on Wednesday stepped up its probe against jailed Samajwadi Party leader Azam Khan, conducting searches at around 10 locations linked to him, his trust and the Mohammad Ali Jauhar University in Uttar Pradesh and Delhi.
The searches began early in the morning and covered premises in Rampur and Saharanpur in Uttar Pradesh, besides Delhi. The Jauhar University campus in Rampur and the Maulana Mohammad Ali Jauhar Trust, associated with Khan, are among the locations being searched.
The operation is part of an ongoing money-laundering investigation being conducted by the ED's Lucknow zonal office under Section 17 of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002. Multiple ED teams are carrying out the searches with assistance from local police and security personnel.
What is the ED probing?
According to officials, the investigation centres on allegations that government contract funds were diverted through private contractors and subsequently routed towards the trust and the university.
The agency is examining financial transactions involving certain contractors who allegedly benefited from government contracts and later transferred funds to the trust or university in the form of donations or payments linked to construction work.
The searches are aimed at tracing the alleged proceeds of crime and collecting financial records, documents and digital evidence that could establish the flow and utilisation of the funds.
The ED is also examining whether funds allegedly diverted from government contracts were used in the creation of assets associated with the university and the trust.
Why Jauhar University is at the centre of the probe
The Mohammad Ali Jauhar University, a private university in Rampur founded by Azam Khan in 2006, has been at the centre of several controversies involving its land, construction and finances.
The latest ED searches come at a time when the university is already facing a separate dispute over alleged construction violations.
The Rampur Development Authority had raised objections to 38 of the university's 40 buildings, alleging that they had been constructed without the required approvals. An order for demolition had triggered a political controversy, but the proposed action was subsequently stayed temporarily by the divisional commissioner pending further proceedings.
Azam Khan's wife, Tazeen Fatma, had recently appealed to the Uttar Pradesh government to reconsider the demolition decision, arguing that the interests of students and the public should be kept in mind.
Fresh pressure on Azam Khan
The latest ED action adds another layer to the legal and political troubles surrounding Azam Khan, who is currently lodged in Rampur jail along with his son Abdullah Azam.
The searches also come against the backdrop of the Samajwadi Party's political campaign around the Jauhar University issue, particularly over the proposed demolition of campus structures.
The ED has so far not publicly disclosed what, if anything, has been seized during Wednesday's searches. The operation was continuing as reports came in, with investigators examining records and electronic evidence from the premises.
The allegations under investigation are not findings of guilt, and the ED's probe is still underway.
