Name of Bihar minister’s husband crops up in Muzaffarpur shelter sex scandal
The wife of an official arrested on charges of sexually assaulting inmates of a short-stay home in Muzaffarpur has accused the husband of state social welfare department minister Kumari Manju Verma of frequently visiting the institution and spending “long hours in the girls’ room”.
“My husband has been framed. It was the minister’s husband who would often visit the shelter with department officials. He would make them sit on the ground floor and spend hours with the girls upstairs,” Shiva Kumari Singh, wife of child protection officer (CPO) Ravi Kumar Raushan, told mediapersons on Wednesday.
The minister rejected the allegations against her husband, Chandeshwar Verma, stating that the Opposition was indulging in “petty politics” to tarnish her image. “Those people (referring to RJD chief Lalu Prasad’s family) who are neck-deep in corruption and unfair practices are trying to malign others,” Kumari Manju said, reiterating that it was her department that had detected the scandal and booked the culprits.
Incidentally, the girls had told judicial and police officers in a statement that a “pet-wale netaji (a potbellied politician)” and a “mooch-wale uncle (a mustachioed man)” used to drop by frequently to sexually abuse them.
Chandeshwar denied the allegation in an interview with a television channel, stating that he had visited the short stay home only once in the last two years – and that too after his wife became the minister of that department.
Shiva Kumari maintained that her husband would visit the short-stay home only for inspection purposes, and was always accompanied by colleagues. “He is being falsely implicated in the case by people with vested interests,” she told reporters. “I have evidence to show that police are protecting the big fish.”
She has requested chief minister Nitish Kumar to recommend a CBI probe into the case, so that only the guilty are punished. Tourism minister Pramod Kumar also asked the director general of police to investigate the case properly.
Courtesy : www.hindustantimes.com
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ED arrests Sandeepa Virk, 'cosmetologist' for alleged money laundering
New Delhi, Aug 13 (PTI): The Enforcement Directorate said on Wednesday it has arrested a woman, who claims to be an actor and a cosmetologist, under the anti-money laundering law in a case of alleged fraud and misrepresentation.
The agency said the purported links of the woman, Sandeepa Virk, with a Reliance Group executive, Angarai Natarajan Sethuraman (President, Corporate Affairs), are also under its scanner. Sethuraman, in a statement, denied any connection with Virk or any transactions related to her.
Virk was taken into custody under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) on Tuesday after searches were conducted against her and her associates in Delhi and Mumbai over the last two days.
A special court sent her to the ED's custody till August 14, the agency said. The woman claims to be the owner of a skin care products selling website named hyboocare.com, which the ED claimed was a "front" for money laundering.
She and her associates are being probed for allegedly exerting undue influence through "misrepresentation" and "defrauding" individuals by soliciting money under false pretences.
According to an Instagram ID of Virk, she is an actor and entrepreneur and the founder of the said website.
The federal agency said in a statement that the woman was also "in touch with" Sethuraman, former director of erstwhile Reliance Capital Limited.
She was communicating with him regarding "illegal liaisoning", the ED claimed, adding that the searches at Sethuraman's residence "confirmed" these allegations.
"Besides, diversion of funds for personal benefit has also been unearthed during the course of the search action," it said.
The ED alleged that public money worth about Rs 18 crore belonging to Reliance Commercial Finance Limited (RCFL) was disbursed to Sethuraman in 2018 by "flouting" prudent lending norms.
The funds were lent under terms that allowed a deferment of the principal amount as well as the interest, with multiple waivers granted and no due diligence conducted, it said.
The ED claimed that besides this, a home loan of Rs 22 crore was provided by Reliance Capital Limited by "violating" the prudential norms. "A large part of these loans are seen to have been eventually siphoned off and remained unpaid," it alleged.
Sethuraman, in a statement, dismissed the allegations as "baseless". He denied any connection with Virk or any transactions related to her.
Detailing about Virk's web portal, the agency said it purportedly sold FDA-approved beauty products. However, the ED said the products listed on the website have been found to be non-existent and the portal lacks a user registration option and is plagued by persistent payment gateway issues.
A scrutiny of the website uncovered minimal social-media engagement, an inactive WhatsApp contact number and an absence of transparent organisational details, all of which reinforce the finding of "non-genuine" commercial activity, the ED claimed.
"These factors, including limited product range, inflated pricing, false claims of FDA approval and technical inconsistencies, indicate that the website serves as a front for laundering funds," it said.
Another social media-hosted bio data of the woman said she is a certified cosmetologist.
The ED said several "incriminating" documents were seized during the searches and the statement of a man named Farrukh Ali, stated to be an associate of Virk, was recorded.
The money-laundering case stems from an FIR lodged by the Punjab Police.
Sethuraman said that the home loan he received from Reliance Capital was granted following due process and was secured by the property offered as collateral.
