Chandigarh (Gurpreet Singh): The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Tuesday carried out a fresh round of searches at multiple locations in Punjab, Uttar Pradesh, and the National Capital Region as part of an investigation being conducted under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).
According to officials, the agency conducted raids at six premises spread across Ludhiana and Jalandhar in Punjab, Bareilly in Uttar Pradesh, and parts of Delhi and Noida. The searches are linked to an ongoing probe involving Hampton Sky Realty Ltd. and individuals associated with the case.
Among the properties searched was the residence of Amit Bajaj, a Municipal Corporation contractor based in Jalandhar’s New Jawahar Nagar area. Investigators also examined locations connected to business entities and individuals suspected of having links to the matter under investigation.
Amit Bajaj and his elder brother, Inderjit Bajaj, are known for undertaking contracts for Municipal Corporations and various government departments in several cities, including Jalandhar, Ludhiana and Mohali. Their business interests are also reported to extend beyond Punjab to states such as Gujarat. In addition to infrastructure and civic contracts, the brothers have allegedly been involved in organisations providing outsourced manpower services.
Responding to the ED action, AAP national convenor Arvind Kejriwal criticised the raids, alleging that central agencies were repeatedly targeting Hindu businesspersons in Punjab. He appealed to members of the trading community not to be intimidated and asserted that the Punjab government would stand by them in the face of such actions.
The Enforcement Directorate has not yet issued a detailed statement regarding the findings of the latest searches. Further developments are awaited as the investigation progresses.
