ED raids Delhi Minister in money laundering probe

The Enforcement Directorate on Thursday raided the premises of Delhi Cabinet Minister and Aam Aadmi Party leader Raaj Kumar Anand and some others as part of a money laundering probe, official sources said.

A dozen premises, including that of the minister in the Civil Lines area of the national capital, were being searched since 7.30 am, they said.

The ED teams are escorted by a team of the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF).

The probe against Anand is being undertaken as per provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMlA).

The investigation stems from a charge sheet filed by the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) on charges of false declarations in imports for customs evasion of more than Rs 7 crore apart from international hawala transactions, the sources said.

A local court recently took cognisance of the DRI prosecution complaint after which the ED filed a PMLA case against Anand and some others, they said.

Anand, 57, is the minister for social welfare and SC/ST welfare among others in the Arvind Kejriwal-led government. He is an MLA from Patel Nagar.