Misuse of insolvency proceedings ED conducts raids in Bengal

    Kolkata, Oct 30 (PTI) The ED on Friday conducted searches at multiple locations in West Bengal as part of a money laundering probe linked to alleged misuse of insolvency proceedings, officials said.

    A total of eight premises have been raided in the case involving Kohinoor Power, lender banks and some others, they said.

    The searches were carried out at premises in Lake Town and Uttarpara, among other places, in connection with loans secured for a power plant project in Jharkhand and allegedly diverted to Kolkata, a senior ED official said.

    "We are investigating the role of two chartered accountants. One of them is based in Lake Town and another in Uttarpara, in connection with the fraud. That is why we conducted the raids today," the official told PTI.

    ED teams arrived early in the morning at the Lake Town flat of chartered accountant Ashok Sarathi and the residence of another CA, Sudipta Ghosh, on Shibtala Street in Uttarpara. The teams were accompanied by central armed police personnel, he said.

    The action has been initiated under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).

    The investigation is focused on the suspected use of "proceeds of crime" and alleged misuse of proceedings before the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT), officials said.

    Talking to the media, Ghosh said, "The raids have nothing to do with corruption. The investigators arrived with the necessary authorisation, and I am cooperating with them. They are carrying out a probe," Ghosh told reporters.

    He, however, did not clarify the specific nature of the investigation.

    "The roots of this alleged fraud lie in Jharkhand. For the 66-megawatt power plant to be set up through a private entity named 'Kohinoor Power Private Limited', a bank loan amounting to approximately Rs 290 crore was secured from a consortium of banks," the official said.

    However, there are allegations that the funds obtained for the power plant's construction were never spent on the project itself.

(This story has not been edited by THE WEEK and is auto-generated from PTI)