ED raids residence of former minister Roshan Baig
New Delhi/Bengaluru, Aug 5: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Thursday conducted searches against former Karnataka minister R Roshan Baig and a Congress MLA in connection with a money laundering investigation into the alleged Rs 4,000 IMA ponzi scam, officials said.
They said multiple premises of Baig and his associates are being raided by the agency under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).
Two of his premises in Shivajinagar of Bengaluru and that of Congress MLA from Chamrajpet in Bengaluru, B Z Zameer Ahmed Khan, and a travel company linked to him are being searched.
Searches were also conducted in some locations in Mumbai.
The Congress MLA is stated to have had a purported property transaction with then MD of IMA Group Mansoor Khan. This transaction was declared by Zameer Ahmed Khan in his election affidavit.
Baig, earlier arrested by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in this case, was suspended from the Congress after the alleged scam came to light.
Baig is out on bail at present.
The Enforcement Directorate action is linked to its probe in the 4000-crore I-Monetary Advisor (IMA) alleged ponzi scam case, taking cognisance of a CBI FIR and a charge sheet.
The CBI, in April, had filed a charge sheet before a special CBI court in Bengaluru and had named Baig, Mansoor Khan, IMA Group and Baig's company Daanish Publications and others.
"It was alleged that the accused former minister received several crores of rupees from IMA funds for election expenditure.
"It was further alleged that the accused was also utilising the said funds for day-to-day expenditure, including salaries of employees of his firm. It was also alleged that the accused has spent the funds for various social and cultural activities in his constituency to increase his popularity," a CBI spokesperson had said in a statement post the filing of the charge sheet.
The alleged IMA scam pertains to over Rs 4,000 crore collected by IMA Group from over a lakh gullible investors in the name of providing attractive returns on investment following Islamic ways.
The CBI has alleged that the money was diverted to Baig, a minister in the erstwhile Congress government, led by Siddaramaiah, so that the IMA Group could continue its illegal activities, CBI officials had said.
The CBI had registered four cases in connection with the scam and has filed multiple charge sheets against 33 accused, including Khan, company directors, several revenue and police officials.
"It was alleged that the said Group had raised unauthorised deposits and cheated the public by failing to repay the principal and as well as the promised returns.
"These funds were allegedly diverted for acquiring properties, paying bribe amounts, etc. Several properties, including moveable and immovable, were identified and attached under KPIDFE (Karnataka Protection of Interest of Depositors in Financial Establishments) Act, 2004 by the competent authority," the CBI had said.
Bengaluru: Enforcement Directorate (ED) conducts raid at the residence of former Karnataka Minister & Congress leader Roshan Baig, in connection with I-Monetary Advisory investment scam
— ANI (@ANI) August 5, 2021
Visuals from the spot. pic.twitter.com/uxJjaK1f01
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4 of family charred to death in fire at house in Howrah
Howrah (PTI): Four members of a family were charred to death in a fire at their house in West Bengal's Howrah district, officials said on Monday morning.
The incident happened in Sauria village in the Joypur police station area around midnight, they said.
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The deceased were identified as Durjodhan Dolui (72), his son Dudhkumar Dolui (45), daughter-in-law Shibani Dolui (40), and granddaughter Shampa Dolui (15).
An investigation is underway to ascertain how the kuchcha house caught fire, officials said.
Two fire tenders doused the blaze, they said.
The bodies have been sent to a government hospital in Uluberia for post-mortem examination, they said.
The family was very poor, officials said, adding that Dudhkumar also has a son, who works as a migrant labourer outside the state.
