Taking major action in Madhya Pradesh, ED has provisionally attached the movable and immovable properties worth Rs 9.79 crore of Dr. Amarnath Mittal, the then Director of Health Services of the state government, and his wife Alka Mittal.
Action taken on complaint of Lokayukta police
ED had started this investigation on the basis of FIR registered by Lokayukta Police Bhopal. This FIR was registered under Section 13(1)(b) and 13(2) of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988. The allegation was that Dr. Amarnath Mittal had accumulated assets much more than his known income.
What came to light in the investigation?
Investigation revealed that Dr. Mittal’s legal income during the stipulated check period was around Rs 60 lakh, while the total value of the properties he bought and spent during this period was around Rs 2.98 crore. That means assets worth Rs 2.38 crore were found to be disproportionate to income.
ED investigation also revealed that Dr. Mittal purchased many properties in his name, in the name of his wife Alka Mittal and in the name of AN Mittal HUF. The agency alleges that this was done to hide the real ownership of the properties and to make the source of black money appear legitimate.
The investigation has revealed unaccounted cash, unexplained bank deposits and layering of financial transactions. Apart from this, huge amounts were also spent on personal and household expenses, for which no concrete account was found. ED says that to make the illegal earnings look legitimate, it was mixed with limited legal income and wife’s income.
Property bought and sold after FIR was registered
According to ED, even after the FIR was registered, the accused sold the previously purchased properties and bought new movable and immovable properties with the money received from them. The agency says that this is a clear case of hiding, diverting and displaying criminal income. For this reason, new properties purchased from the sale of old properties have also been brought under the ambit of confiscation.
The properties attached by ED include long term capital gain bonds, residential land and houses, agricultural land, all these properties are located in Bhopal and Raisen districts. ED has made it clear that further investigation is going on in this matter and more revelations may be made in the coming days.
