The Directorate of Enforcement (ED) has taken provisional action by attaching properties valued at approximately Rs. 4.08 Crore under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002. This action is part of an ongoing investigation into the case involving ‘M/s Maa Bijasen Agro Infrastructure Warehouse’ in Morena, Madhya Pradesh.
Among the attached properties is a warehouse registered under the name of Ravindra Kumar Sharma, with an estimated worth of Rs. 2.65 Crore. Additionally, a house owned by Smt. Sangeeta Sharma and Utsav Sharma have been attached, with a value of Rs. 1.43 Crore.
The ED’s inquiry was initiated based on an FIR filed by the CBI, ACB Bhopal against Ranjan Kumar Sinha, the former Chief Manager of UCO Bank’s Morena Branch, and the partners/owners of M/s Maa Bijasen Agro Infrastructure Warehouse—Ravindra Kumar Sharma and Smt. Sangeeta Sharma. The investigation uncovered that the owners of the warehouse engaged in fraudulent activities, securing 22 warehouse receipt loans from UCO Bank, Morena. These loans were obtained by presenting warehouse receipts (lacking underlying stocks) in the names of different individuals, leading to the misappropriation of the bank’s funds and defrauding UCO Bank, Morena of approximately Rs. 10.70 Crore.
Furthermore, it was revealed that the loan amounts were diverted to various accounts, eventually being withdrawn in cash and utilized for the acquisition of property. The ED’s comprehensive investigation into this financial wrongdoing is currently ongoing.
