ED questions former TDB officer citing money laundering in Sabarimala gold loss case
Kochi (PTI): Former TDB administrative officer S Sreekumar was questioned by the Enforcement Directorate on Friday here as part of its probe into the money laundering angle of the Sabarimala gold loss incident, officials said.
Sreekumar is the sixth accused in the case related to the loss of gold from the Dwarapalaka (guardian deity) idol plates being probed by the Special Investigation Team (SIT). He was granted bail by a Kollam vigilance court on January 29.
He was not arraigned as an accused in the second case involving the loss of gold from the doorframes of the Sreekovil (sanctum sanctorum).
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ED sources said that following a summons, Sreekumar appeared at the agency’s office here around 10 am.
According to ED officials, Sreekumar was the administrative officer at Sabarimala when the Dwarapalaka idols were taken to Chennai for gold plating, and he had signed the related documents.
Recently, the ED had interrogated another former TDB administrative officer, Murari Babu.
ED sources said that the accused in the two cases being probed by the SIT are also facing a money laundering investigation and would be questioned.
The ED will soon issue summons to prime accused Unnikrishnan Potty, who was released from jail after securing statutory bail in the SIT case on Thursday.
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Cong 'pocketed' Rs 150 cr per annum from Assam healthcare budget during 15 yrs of rule: Shah
Guwahati (PTI): Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Sunday alleged that the Congress, during its previous 15 years of rule in Assam, "pocketed" Rs 150 crore per annum from the state healthcare budget.
Inaugurating and laying the foundation stone for healthcare projects worth Rs 2,092 crore in Assam, Shah said the BJP works for affordable healthcare for all sections of society and lauded Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma for bringing the state's medical facilities at par with states like Gujarat, Maharashtra and Karnataka.
"Assam's healthcare was in shambles 10 years ago as Congress worked only for the financial health of its leaders' families," he said.
Attacking Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, he said that no Indian supports his acts of "defaming" the country in his bid to oppose the BJP and Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
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He lambasted the Congress for its "shirtless" protest at the recent AI summit in New Delhi and Gandhi for having 'chai-pakora' on the stairs of Parliament House.
"We were also in the opposition and staged protests against the government, but there is a right platform for it," he said.
"Parliament is a sacred seat of democracy. Its stairs should not be used for even dharnas. And Rahul Gandhi was having 'chai-pakora' there. Doesn't he know where to have his breakfast?" asked the Union minister.
Shah inaugurated the Rs 675-crore Pragjyotishpur Medical College and Hospital in Guwahati, at a programme held on its premises.
He also virtually inaugurated two cancer centres at Golaghat and Tinsukia, both under Assam Cancer Care Foundation (ACCF), constructed at a cost of Rs 135 crore each.
Shah virtually laid the foundation stone for super-speciality hospitals at Diphu Medical College and Hospital (Rs 220 crore), Jorhat Medical College and Hospital (Rs 310 crore), and Barpeta Medical College and Hospital (Rs 284 crore).
The foundation stone for a Rs 218-crore Swasthya Bhawan in Guwahati, and the Abhayapuri District Hospital (Rs 115 crore) were also laid by the Union home minister.
Shah arrived here on Saturday evening on a two-day visit to Assam, his fourth visit to the northeastern state in four months.
