In a money laundering case, the Directorate of Enforcement (ED) has temporarily attached properties worth Rs. 58 lahks owned by travel agent Nitish Ghai, who is headquartered in Ludhiana. Commercial properties located in Ludhiana make up the linked properties.
On the basis of numerous FIRs against Nitish Ghai and others that the Punjab Police had filed at various police stations in the Ludhiana District, the ED opened an investigation. The FIRs alleged that the accused had defrauded the public by falsely promising them foreign work permit visas; neither the promised visas nor the victims’ payments had ever materialised. After checking the FIRs that the police had filed, it was discovered that 35 of them were still active, meaning they were either being investigated or tried at the time the profits of crime were determined.
The examination of Nitish Ghai’s bank accounts over the course of the investigation revealed that he regularly stole money from the trusting public on the pretence of giving them work visas for foreign countries. This money was then placed into bank accounts managed by him, his family, and the several consulting businesses he was running. Then, in his and his family’s names, immovable properties were purchased using these cash deposits. There is still more to look into.
