ED raid in Jharkhand: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) recovered two AK-47 rifles during a raid at the premises of a close aide of Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren. The weapons were recovered from the house of Prem Prakash, who is considered close to CM Soren.
The ED raided 17 locations across Jharkhand early on Wednesday (August 24) in connection with a money laundering case linked with illegal mining in the state.
The central agency is also conducting searches in neighbouring Bihar and in Delhi-NCR, Tamil Nadu as part of its probe.
The searches were carried out after fresh information came to the fore following the questioning of Pankaj Mishra, a political aide of Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren, and Mishra's associate and muscleman Bachhu Yadav, the sources said.
Both Mishra and Yadav were arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in this case sometime ago.
The ED probe began after the agency raided Mishra and his alleged associates on July 8, covering 19 locations in Sahibganj, Barhet, Rajmahal, Mirza Chauki and Barharwa in Jharkhand in the case linked to alleged instances of illegal mining and extortion.
The searches were launched after the ED filed a case under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) against Mishra and others in March, alleging that the former "illegally grabbed or amassed huge assets in his favour".
Soon after the July raids, the ED seized funds amounting to Rs 13.32 crore lying in 50 bank accounts. It had said it was probing the trail of Rs 100 crore of "proceeds of crime" generated from illegal mining operations in Jharkhand.
(With inputs from PTI)
