New Delhi (Agency): The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has made another significant arrest in connection with a money laundering investigation linked to an alleged bribery case involving a former special court judge in Panchkula. Ajay Parmar, the nephew of the suspended judge Sudhir Parmar, was taken into custody under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) after the ED conducted searches at his premises, according to official sources.
This arrest follows the recent apprehension of two directors and “key managerial persons” of the Gurugram-based realty group M3M, Basant Bansal and Pankaj Bansal, who were produced before a special PMLA court in Panchkula and subsequently remanded to five-day ED custody.
The money laundering case, which led to these arrests, originated from an FIR filed by the Haryana Police Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) in April. The FIR implicated Sudhir Parmar, Ajay Parmar, and another M3M group director, Roop Kumar Bansal, among others. The ED alleges that Sudhir Parmar displayed favoritism towards the accused individuals in criminal cases pending in his court, including those brought by the ED and the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).
Parmar was suspended by the Punjab and Haryana High Court following the registration of the ACB case. The ED has collected substantial evidence, including bank statements and a money trail, in connection with the allegations mentioned in the FIR.
It is worth noting that the ED had previously conducted raids on the M3M promoters and others in a separate money laundering case linked to the IREO group and Lalit Goyal, the owner of the real estate firm. Roop Kumar Bansal was arrested as part of that investigation. Basant Bansal and Pankaj Bansal had obtained interim protection from arrest until July 5 from the Delhi High Court in that case. However, the ED proceeded to arrest them in connection with the money laundering case related to the alleged bribery of the judge after filing a fresh case under the PMLA.
In a statement released after the June 1 raids, the ED revealed that a significant amount of money, totaling hundreds of crores, had been funneled through the M3M group in connection with the case involving the IREO group. One transaction alone saw the M3M group receiving approximately Rs 400 crore from the IREO group through various shell companies.
The ongoing investigation into these complex money laundering activities aims to uncover the full extent of the alleged bribery and illicit financial transactions. The ED’s efforts underscore the commitment to combat financial crimes and hold those involved accountable, regardless of their positions or affiliations.
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