Reacting to the development, A. Raja has rejected the ED charge. “This is not my land. They (ED) claim it’s benami land,”. Raja also chose to call it “politically motivated” move by the ruling BJP which will again be dealt in court.
Coimbatore: The Enforcement Directorate ( ED) has provisionally attached 45 acres of land worth about Rs.55 crore in Coimbatore, which was allegedly held in the name of a benami company of former Union Telecom Minister A. Raja, who is a sitting MP elected from Nilgiris.
Oddly, the ED had named MP A Raja in the press release but never mentioned the name of the 'benami company' though it detailed its operations.
According to the ED, the said land parcel was given to the benami company as a kickback for getting the environmental clearance by A Raja to a real estate company based at Gurugram, which is one of the largest real estate companies in India.
A. Raja held the post of Union Minister of Environment from 2004-2007 and the clearance was given to the real estate company during his tenure according to ED.
The ED in its Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) investigation has found that the real estate company has paid up to the benami company which was registered in the name of A. Raja’s family members.
The central agency has also noted that the company was started “with the sole objective of using it as a vehicle to park the proceeds of crime”.
In the meanwhile, Tamil Nadu BJP President K. Annamalai has tweeted that this type of news would continue to emerge after he unveils the property details of ministers in the Tamil Nadu cabinet. It may be recalled Annamalai has said that he has planned to reveal the asset details of TN ministers soon.
Reacting to the development, A. Raja has rejected the ED charge. “This is not my land. They (ED) claim it’s benami land,”. Raja also chose to call it “politically motivated” move by the ruling BJP which will again be dealt in court. Adding to this, he had earlier said that he has already submitted the same to 2G Court which acquitted him of all charges this time last year.
It is to be noted that 95% of the cases filed by ED against politicians is always from the opposition and there has bee a four-fold jump in ED cases against politicians since 2014 with no convictions yet.
As of last year, out of the 5,422 cases that have been filed by ED only 23 cases (0.5%) have ever reached the conviction stage.
Oddly, the ED had named MP A Raja in the press release but never mentioned the name of the 'benami company' though it detailed its operations.
According to the ED, the said land parcel was given to the benami company as a kickback for getting the environmental clearance by A Raja to a real estate company based at Gurugram, which is one of the largest real estate companies in India.
A. Raja held the post of Union Minister of Environment from 2004-2007 and the clearance was given to the real estate company during his tenure according to ED.
The ED in its Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) investigation has found that the real estate company has paid up to the benami company which was registered in the name of A. Raja’s family members.
The central agency has also noted that the company was started “with the sole objective of using it as a vehicle to park the proceeds of crime”.
In the meanwhile, Tamil Nadu BJP President K. Annamalai has tweeted that this type of news would continue to emerge after he unveils the property details of ministers in the Tamil Nadu cabinet. It may be recalled Annamalai has said that he has planned to reveal the asset details of TN ministers soon.
Reacting to the development, A. Raja has rejected the ED charge. “This is not my land. They (ED) claim it’s benami land,”. Raja also chose to call it “politically motivated” move by the ruling BJP which will again be dealt in court. Adding to this, he had earlier said that he has already submitted the same to 2G Court which acquitted him of all charges this time last year.
It is to be noted that 95% of the cases filed by ED against politicians is always from the opposition and there has bee a four-fold jump in ED cases against politicians since 2014 with no convictions yet.
As of last year, out of the 5,422 cases that have been filed by ED only 23 cases (0.5%) have ever reached the conviction stage.