Bhopal: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has seized properties — both movable and immovable — valued at Rs 10.77 crore in Bhopal. These assets belong to Sunil Kumar, the former Vice Chancellor of Rajiv Gandhi Proudyogiki Vishwavidyalaya (RGPV), Rakesh Singh Rajput, the ex-registrar, Hrishikesh Verma, the former Finance Controller, as well as Kumar Mayank, Ramkumar Raghuvanshi (both ex-bank officials), and other private individuals implicated in a financial scandal at RGPV.
This action falls under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) of 2002 and is tied to a case involving the misappropriation of university funds.
The ED launched its probe following an FIR filed by the Gandhi Nagar Police Station in Bhopal. The FIR, based on sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) of 1860 and the Prevention of Corruption Act of 1988, accused former RGPV officials of embezzling Rs 19.48 crore from the university.
The ED’s findings uncovered that these officials, along with Kumar Mayank and others, diverted university money for personal gain, amounting to Rs 19.48 crore.
In earlier operations under Section 17 of the PMLA, the ED also froze gold jewellery, mutual funds, and bank accounts worth Rs 1.67 crore during search and seizure efforts.
In a separate investigation, the ED in Bhopal has also provisionally taken control of assets worth Rs 57.96 lakh owned by Shailendra Pasari. This seizure, also under the PMLA of 2002, relates to a case of accumulating wealth far beyond his known income sources.
The investigation began after the Central Bureau of Investigation’s Anti-Corruption Branch (CBI, ACB) in Jabalpur filed an FIR against Pasari under the Prevention of Corruption Act of 1988, accusing him of corruption tied to disproportionate assets accumulation. Pasari was posted as Senior Manager (Civil) of Jayant Project, Northern Coalfields Limited (NCL), Singrauli (MP).
The CBI later submitted chargesheets against Pasari and his wife, Jyoti Pasari, alleging that they amassed Rs 1.30 crore in unaccounted wealth. The ED’s probe revealed that Pasari had built a substantial portfolio of properties in his name and those of his family by funnelling cash into bank accounts and converting it into fixed deposits under various family members’ names. Earlier, the CBI had seized Rs 72.97 lakh in cash from Pasari’s home, office, and lockers.
(IANS)
