ED seizes Rs 2.85 cr cash, 133 gold coins after raids against Delhi minister Satyendar Jain
New Delhi, Jun 7: "Unexplained" cash of Rs 2.85 crore and 133 gold coins were seized after raids were conducted at the premises of Delhi minister Satyendar Jain and his alleged associates as part of a money laundering probe against them, the ED said Tuesday.
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) said those raided on Monday "either directly or indirectly assisted (the minister) or participated in the process of money laundering".
The cash and coins were "unexplained" and were kept in a "secret" place, it said in a statement.
Jain, 57, was arrested on May 30 under the criminal sections of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) and is in ED custody till June 9.
The ED had conducted searches at about 7 premises, including that of a jeweller, in Delhi and some neighbouring locations on Monday.
Jain, a minister without portfolio in the Arvind Kejriwal government, is being probed by the federal agency under the PMLA on charges of alleged hawala dealings.
Kejriwal recently had defended Jain as a "hardcore honest and patriot" person who was being framed in a "false case" and hoped the minister will come out clean after the ED probe.
The agency said those raided include Jain's wife Poonam Jain, his business associates Ankush Jain and Vaibhav Jain, Naveen Jain and Siddharth Jain (directors of Ram Prakash Jewellers Pvt Ltd), G S Matharoo (chairman of Lala Sher Singh Jivan Vigyan Trust which runs Prudence group of schools), Yogesh Kumar Jain (director in Ram Prakash Jewellers Pvt Ltd.), father-in-law of Ankush Jain and Lala Sher Singh Jivan Vigyan Trust.
"Lala Sher Singh Jivan Vigyan Trust had provided accommodation entries for transfer of land from company beneficially owned by Satyendar Kumar Jain to family members of accomplices in order to alienate the property and to frustrate the process of confiscation," the ED said.
It said "incriminating documents and digital records" were seized during the raids.
"Cash amounting to Rs 2.85 crore and 133 gold coins weighing 1.80 kg in total from unexplained source were found to be secreted in the said premises and were seized under PMLA," it said.
In April, the ED had attached assets worth Rs 4.81 crore of Jain's family and companies "beneficially owned and controlled" by him as part of the probe.
In a statement issued then, the ED had said a provisional order was brought out under the PMLA to "attach immovable properties worth Rs 4.81 crore belonging to Akinchan Developers Pvt. Ltd., Indo Metal Impex Pvt Ltd, Paryas Infosolutions Pvt. Ltd., Manglayatan Projects Pvt. Ltd., J.J. Ideal Estate Pvt. Ltd., Swati Jain, wife of Vaibhav Jain, Sushila Jain, wife of Ajit Prasad Jain, and Indu Jain, wife of Sunil Jain."
The probe found that "during the period 2015-16, when Satyendar Kumar Jain was a public servant, the companies beneficially owned and controlled by him received accommodation entries to the tune of Rs 4.81 crore from shell (paper) companies against cash transferred to Kolkata-based entry operators through the hawala route".
"These amounts were utilised for direct purchase of land or for repayment of loan taken for the purchase of agricultural land in and around Delhi," the ED said.
The named persons in the attachment order are associates and family members of Jain, officials had said.
The money laundering case against the AAP minister stems from an August 2017 FIR filed by the CBI against him and others on charges of alleged possession of disproportionate assets (DA).
A charge sheet was filed by the CBI in December, 2018 stating that the alleged DA was to the tune of Rs 1.47 crore, about 217 per cent more than his known sources of income, during 2015-17.
The Income Tax Department too had probed these transactions and had issued an order attaching "benami assets" allegedly linked to Jain.
ED has conducted searches on 6.6.2022 under PMLA,2002 at the premises of Satyendar Kumar Jain and others. Various incriminating documents, digital records, cash amounting to Rs. 2.85 Crore and 133 gold coins weighing 1.80 kg in total from unexplained source have been seized. pic.twitter.com/WYSDPkPrXN
— ED (@dir_ed) June 7, 2022
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Real Madrid fines Valverde and Tchouaméni half a million euros each for altercation
Barcelona (AP): Real Madrid slapped players Federico Valverde and Aurélien Tchouaméni with half-a-million-euro ($588,000) fines on Friday for their altercation during practice.
The massive fines came a day after the midfielders tussled when the team trained. Valverde said in a post on social media on Thursday that no punches were thrown. But Valverde knocked his head on a table and he suffered a small cut that required a brief hospital visit.
On social media, Valverde initially called it a “meaningless fight” with a teammate and said “everything has been blown out of proportion."
His employers, however, considered it a significant enough breach of team discipline to nail both Valverde and Tchouaméni with fines that bite even the bank account of a top soccer player. The half-a-million euro penalties reflect the reputational damage the club was enduring in a chaotic end to a disappointing season.
In a statement, the 15-time European champion said its disciplinary action was concluded after both players expressed to the club “their complete remorse for what happened and apologized to one another.”
Madrid added they also apologized to their teammates, the coaching staff and club supporters, as well as showing their willingness to accept whatever disciplinary action the club deemed “opportune.”
Tchouaméni was back training with Madrid on Friday, two days before they play at Barcelona in a clasico. Madrid has to win otherwise Barcelona will be crowned La Liga champion.
After being notified of the fine, he posted a public apology to the club and its fans on social media.
“What happened this week in training is unacceptable,” Tchouaméni wrote. "I say this while thinking about the example we are expected to set for young people, whether in football or at school.
“Above all, I am sorry for the image we projected of the club.”
Valverde was not at practice due to the head knock.
Both players are set to play in the World Cup next month, with Tchouaméni playing for France and Valverde for Uruguay.
Chaotic end to a poor season
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The run-in between the players, who for seasons have played side by side in Madrid's midfield, came after they argued this week in previous training sessions. But tempers boiled over on Thursday. Spanish media was rife with reports that the players previously disagreed over the club's decision to let coach Xabi Alonso go after just months on the job.
It was not the only altercation involving Madrid players during training this week. Álvaro Carreras confirmed he was in a “minor” incident with a teammate. Spanish media said he and fellow defender Antonio Rüdiger got into a scuffle.
Álvaro Arbeloa, the coach who was promoted from Madrid's reserve team when Alonso was fired in January, will face tough questions on what went wrong inside the changing room when he gives a press conference on Saturday ahead of the clasico at Camp Nou.
Madrid is facing a second consecutive campaign without a major trophy amid rumors in the Spanish media that club president Florentino Pérez is considering bringing back Jose Mourinho to straighten out his underperforming team.
