The Enforcement Directorate conducted a series of raids to multiple premises in four states, all linked to IAS officer Pooja Singhal, who is currently serving in the Jharkhand government as the mining secretary. As many as 18 premises across states, including Bihar and Bengal, searched in connection with money laundering probe into embezzlement of Rs 19 cr from Khunti district.
Who’s Pooja Singhal?
Pooja Singhal cleared her civil services exams in the year 2000 before being posted as the District Collector in Khunti, the district at the centre of the the MGNREGA scam. She not only has served as the Agriculture Secretary in the previous BJP government, but also served in Chatra, Khunti and Palamu before making her way up to the higher corridors of power in Jharkhand. As Depiuty Commissioner of Palamu, Singhal was accused of transferring nearly 83 acres of land to a private company for mining. Her husband Abhishek Jha is the managing director of Pulse Sanjeevani Healthcare Private Hospital.
The detailed update-
According to the financial probe agency, the raids in Jharkhand, Bihar, West Bengal and Punjab were part of its probe into a case of money laundering. This was after allegations surfaced that the state government led by Hemant Soren had diverted the funds meant for the MGNREGA scheme.
As per the report of The Telegraph, in Ranchi, sources claimed that raids were being conducted at Pulse Hospital, owned by Singhal’s husband Abhishek Jha and her official residence, besides other locations in Doranda, Bariatu and Kanke Road. City police, however, remained tight-lipped. Senior SP S.K.Jha didn’t receive calls.
Although the investigation by the ED is linked to a five-year-old case, the discovery of Rs. 19 crore comes at a time when Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren is facing serious questions on corruption. Soren is accused of allotting a mining lease in his favour as well as a plot of land to his wife.
