New Delhi, May 17, 2019 - Enforcement Directorate (ED) has provisionally attached immovable properties of former Chief Minister Om Prakash Chautala which consists of land and farm house located in New Delhi worth Rs 1.94 crore in a corruption case under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), probe agency officials said here on Friday.
The ED move comes after the registration of an FIR by CBI against Om Prakash Chautala and others for acquisition of assets disproportionate to their known source of income.
The CBI has filed a charge sheet against Om Prakash Chautala, Abhay Chautala and Ajay Chautala under the Prevention of Corruption Act 1988.
The CBI investigation revealed that Om Prakash Chautala had acquired assets disproportionate to his known source of income of more than Rs 6 crore from May 2, 1993 to May 30, 2006.
Investigation also revealed that Abhay Singh and Ajay Singh Chautala had also acquired assets disproportionate to their known source of income to the tune of Rs 119, 69,82,619 and Rs 27,74,74,260 respectively.
“The investigation under PMLA revealed that Om Prakash Chautala had acquired Immovable Properties at New Delhi, Panchkula and also constructed a residential house at Sirsa in Haryana from the money received from undisclosed sources,” ED officials said.
The probe also revealed that Om Prakash Chautala was directly involved in acquisition and projecting various tainted properties as his untainted properties. He had disclosed properties so acquired in the affidavit filed before returning officer in Haryana Vidhan Sabha election in 2005 and 2009 thereby projecting publicly the tainted properties as untainted.
ED had earlier attached properties of OP Chautala to the tune of Rs 46,96,000 which got confirmed by Adjudicating Authority under PMLA.
Again properties worth Rs 3.68 crore of his were also attached in April 2019.
The ‘Prosecution Complaint’ (PC) against OP Chautala was also filed before Special Court on July 1, 2018, cognisance of which was taken by the special court on November27, 2018.
Later a supplementary PC was also filed before Special Court on April 25 this year.
With this attachment, the probing agency has attached property of OP Chautala to the extent of the entire proceeds of crime generated through alleged acquisition of ‘Disproportionate Assets’ amounting to around Rs 6 crore.
(Agency)