Kashmir Impulse Desk
Jammu, Sep 02
India’s Enforcement Directorate searched the residence and office of a prominent businessman in Jammu on Wednesday as part of a nationwide investigation into an alleged fraud involving toll collections at National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) plazas, according to sources.
The searches, conducted under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, were part of an operation covering about 14 locations in Jammu and Kashmir, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Delhi-NCR, and West Bengal.
The investigation relates to two police cases alleging that unauthorised software was used to generate toll receipts and divert collections outside NHAI’s official accounting system, the sources said.
The ED had not issued an official statement on the searches by late Wednesday.
ED officials, accompanied by central security forces, searched the businessman’s residence in Green Belt, Gandhi Nagar and his office in Trikuta Nagar, the sources said.
The searches began at about 9 am, with entry and exit points at both premises sealed during the operation.
Investigators examined documentary and digital records as they sought to trace suspected proceeds of crime and identify beneficiaries, according to the sources.
The sources said forensic examination and NHAI records had indicated the use of unauthorised software in the alleged scheme.
Investigators were also examining financial transactions across several states to establish the flow of funds, the sources said.
Further legal action by the ED and NHAI would follow as the investigation progresses, they said.
