• By Vivek Raj
  • Mon, 06 May 2024 09:42 AM (IST)
  • Source:JND
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The Enforcement Directorate (ED) is currently carrying out extensive raids across multiple locations in Ranchi. A substantial sum of cash has been seized from the residence of Sanjiv Lal, who serves as the personal secretary to Jharkhand's rural development minister, Alamgir Alam. These raids are linked to the ongoing investigation into the Virendra Ram case. Reports indicate that approximately Rs 20 crore in cash has been seized so far.

Video footage from the operation depicted bundles of currency notes spread across a room, purportedly belonging to the domestic help of Sanjiv Lal.

According to sources within the Enforcement Directorate (ED), efforts are underway to tally the confiscated cash to ascertain its exact value, which is believed to fall within the range of Rs 20-30 crore. The bulk of the currency is comprised of Rs 500 notes, and accompanying the cash, authorities have also recovered some jewelry, as per PTI reports.

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These searches were conducted in connection with a money laundering investigation involving Virendra K Ram, a former chief engineer of the rural development department, who was apprehended by the ED last year. Ram stands accused of accumulating assets worth Rs 100 crore and was arrested in February 2023 in connection with a money laundering probe related to alleged irregularities in the implementation of certain government schemes.

Alamgi Alam, aged 70, is a prominent leader within the Congress party and serves as the representative for the Pakur constituency in the Jharkhand assembly.

In November 2019, the state's Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) filed an FIR after apprehending Suresh Prasad Verma, a junior engineer, for allegedly accepting a bribe. Subsequent investigations by the ACB revealed a significant sum of cash at a property owned by Verma and occupied by his cousin, Alok Ranjan, who is linked to Virendra Ram.

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As per the Enforcement Directorate's remand note, Ram, along with his accountant, faces accusations of laundering illicit funds through fictitious transactions. These funds are alleged to have been routed into various bank accounts belonging to Ram and his family members. It is also claimed that the laundered money was used to acquire valuable real estate in New Delhi, Jamshedpur, and Ranchi, as well as luxury vehicles.