In a corruption case, CBI Chandigarh team raided the Strawberry Hills office of ED (Enforcement Directorate) in Shimla. This action was taken when the ED deputy director, who is the main accused in the case, absconded with the middleman. CBI has seized many important files and documents after hours of searching in the office. According to the information, the accused has also taken the amount of alleged illegal recovery with him.
absconding of deputy director and middleman
According to sources, the Deputy Director is accused of demanding a bribe of lakhs of rupees from a middleman in exchange for settling a case. In this case the complainant had given a written complaint to Chandigarh CBI. After receiving the complaint, CBI formed a special team for investigation on the instructions of higher officials.
CBI also got the recording of money transactions between the middleman and the complainant, information about which came to the knowledge of the Deputy Director. As soon as he got wind of this, he absconded with the middleman. On Monday, CBI registered a case against the Deputy Director under corruption and other sections.
CBI raid on ED office and residence
CBI teams are raiding various places in search of the accused. Along with the ED office in Shimla, the residence of the Deputy Director was also raided. The operation, which started on Tuesday morning, continued till late Wednesday evening, in which the CBI seized several documents and electronic devices from inside the ED office.
Corruption allegations and scope of investigation
The deputy director was being investigated in a case related to the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA). The allegation is that he demanded bribe in exchange for solving it. After receiving the complaint by Chandigarh CBI, the case was thoroughly investigated and relevant evidence was collected.
CBI found that the accused had prepared several documents related to illegal transactions. Apart from this, many evidences have also been obtained from electronic devices. Regarding the case, a CBI team has also been sent outside Shimla to arrest the accused.
Coordination between CBI and ED
In this action of CBI, cooperation of officials of central investigating agencies based in Shimla was taken. Since ED mainly investigates cases related to money laundering and CBI works on cases related to corruption, the raid became a topic of discussion between the two agencies.
action environment
CBI completely sealed the ED office during the raid. None of the personnel inside were allowed to go out, and no one from outside was allowed to enter. Due to this raid, other employees of the ED office were called to work even during the Christmas holidays.
The raid lasted for 36 hours
CBI searched the documents in the office for 36 hours and collected many evidences. However, the CBI refused to share detailed information on the case. An officer only said that a case has been registered and investigation is ongoing.
Indication of strict action on corruption
This action taken by CBI reflects its strict policy against corruption. The absconding of the Deputy Director and finding evidence of bribery allegations makes this matter more serious. Now, the investigating agencies are busy arresting the accused and getting to the bottom of the case.
