- By Aditya Jha
- Sun, 16 Feb 2025 09:23 AM (IST)
- Source:JND
IAS and former Mines Secretary in Jharkhand Pooja Singhal might get debarred from her new posting after the intervention of the Enforcement Directorate (ED). The central investigation agency has requested the Special Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) Court to ensure that Singhal is not posted in any state government's department, citing that she might influence the ongoing investigation against her.
The demand from ED came after the PMLA court had sought the Jharkhand government's approval to prosecute Singhal in a money laundering case associated with misuse of MNREGA funds. Singhal is accused of embezzling crores of MGNREGA funds while she was Deputy Commissioner in Khunti.
Singhal was arrested by ED on May 11, 22, after an interrogation for over 15 hours in the case. The investigating team also stated that the IAS officer was not giving satisfactory answers to their queries.
However, she was granted bail by a PMLA court in Ranchi after remaining in jail for 28 months on December 7, 2024. The state government revoked her suspension on the same day, and she joined the Department of Personnel.
While she is waiting for her new posting, the petition by the ED has now raised suspicion over her reinstatement in the same department. Singhal has also filed her response in the court, and the judgment is likely to be delivered on February 17.
Multiple Cases Against Pooja Singhal
A 2000-batch IAS officer, Singhal has been framed under several serious charges by the investigating agencies. Apart from the hyped MNREGA case, she is also accused of paying Rs 6 crore in advance to the two NGOs for musli farming, which was never done. She is also accused of transferring 83 acres of forest land to a private company for mining while she was the Deputy Commissioner in Palamu. The ED also stated that the IAS officer transferred Rs 16.57 lakh to the three bank accounts related to CA Suman Kumar.
