Suspended IAS Pooja Singhal’s properties attached in MGNREGA scam: ED

Enforcement Directorate.

New Delhi : The Enforcement Directorate (ED) said on Thursday that the adjudicating authority has confirmed the provisional attachment of immovable properties worth several crores of rupees belonging to suspended IAS officer Pooja Singhal in Jharkhand.
Earlier, the ED had attached these immovable properties worth Rs 82.77 crore belonging to Singhal and others in Ranchi.The properties include Pulse Super Speciality Hospital, Pulse Diagnostic and Imaging Centre, plants and machineries, and two land parcels in Ranchi.
The ED had initiated a money-laundering investigation on the basis of multiple FIRs registered by the Jharkhand Police and the state Vigilance Bureau. The investigation revealed that the proceeds of crime generated from the MNREGA scam was deposited in different bank accounts belonging to Singhal and her relatives, and such funds were also used to purchase properties.
The proceeds of crime were intermingled and layered with the other unaccounted money generated by Singhal by misusing her official position. Using this modus operandi, Singhal amassed huge wealth disproportionate to her known source of income.
The funds invested in these immovable properties primarily came from the unaccounted cash profits generated from these proceeds of crime.During its investigation, the ED had conducted searches at various locations belonging to Singhal and her associates.
During the searches, cash to the tune of Rs 19.76 crore was unearthed and seized.Singhal was arrested by the ED on May 11 last year, and a charge sheet was filed against her and six others on July 5, 2022 on charges of money laundering.
She is currently in judicial custody at the Hotwar Jail in Ranchi after being denied any relief by the Supreme Court.