On 03.11.2023, the Directorate of Enforcement (ED) conducted follow-up search operations in the Jal Jeevan Mission Scam at 26 sites, including bank accounts in Jaipur and Dausa districts of Rajasthan, in accordance with the provisions of the Money Laundering Act, 2002 (PMLA). Searches were carried out on the official and home addresses of prominent PHED officials, including Subodh Agarwal, ACS (PHED), as well as private people.
The ED launched a probe after the ACB Rajasthan filed a FIR against Padamchand Jain (Proprietor: M/s Shree Shyam Tubewell Company), Mahesh Mittal (Proprietor: M/s Shree Ganpati Tubewell Company), and others, including PHED officers. Another FIR was also filed by the Rajasthan Police, Bajaj Nagar Police Station, under different sections of the IPC on the basis of a complaint stating that one of the suspected businesses used a forged and falsified work experience certificate.
An ED investigation found that the abovementioned contractors were involved in getting contracts for Jal Jeevan Mission works by bribing top PHED officials and using bogus false work completion certificates provided by M/s Indian Railway Construction International Limited (IRCON). Several middlemen and real estate agents assisted PHED officials in siphoning off unlawfully acquired money from the JJM fraud.
During the search operations, a total of Rs. 2.21 crore was seized, including unaccounted cash of Rs. 48 lakh and bank balance of Rs.1.73 crore, as well as various incriminating documents such as property documents, digital evidence, hard disks, mobile phones, and so on, revealing suspicious transactions involving associated persons. The total seizure in this case to date is Rs. 11.03 crore, including Rs. 6.50 crore in gold and silver. More research is being conducted.
