ED crackdown on Bangladesh infiltrators, 17 sites raided in Jharkhand, Bengal
On the eve of the first phase of polling for 43 Assembly seats in Jharkhand, the Enforcement Directorate on Tuesday conducted raids at 17 locations in the state and West Bengal.
Agency sources confirmed to The Tribune that the raids were conducted in connection with its money laundering probe linked to suspected illegal entry of Bangladeshi nationals.
The ED raids, which continued beyond 3 pm, resulted in recovery of various incriminating items, including fake Aadhaar cards, forged passports, illegal arms, immovable property documents, cash, jewellery, printing papers, printing machines, and blank pro formas, used for forging Aadhaar cards.
According to sources, ED’s ECIR (Enforcement Case Information Report), registered under various PMLA provisions, is based on a previous FIR filed by the Jharkhand Police at Ranchi’s Bariyatu police station in June this year.
In September, the agency had initiated proceedings under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) to investigate alleged trafficking of Bangladeshi women into Jharkhand and subsequent generation of illicit funds.
On June 6, ED had filed an ECIR at the Bariyatu police station in Ranchi under Sections 420, 467, 468, 471 and 34 of IPC, 1860; Section 12 of the Passports Act, 1967 and Section 14-A of the Foreigners Act, 1946.
As per the ECIR, Nipah Akhtar Khushi, hailing from Bangladesh, was brought to Kolkata by a girl named Manisha Rai with the help of another girl named Jhuma on the midnight of May 31, 2024, by illegally crossing Bangladesh border through the jungle route in connivance with private agents.
The case further related to illegal infiltration of Bangladeshi citizens into India with the help of agents who were giving them fake documents establishing Indian citizenship, ED sources said.
Several persons are involved in illegal activities relating to illegal infiltration, making fake identity proofs, which are criminal activities linked to proceeds of crime as per the definition provided under section 2 (1)(u) of the PMLA, 2002.
It, therefore, necessitated a probe into illegal infiltration of such persons from Bangladesh into India and also of the agents who are facilitating such activities that are aimed at acquiring “Proceeds of Crime” and commit other criminal activities.
The development comes even as during the election campaigns in Jharkhand, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and other BJP leaders allege that the JMM-led state government has facilitated such infiltrations.
