ED raids multiple locations in Kolkata

Kolkata, Dec 28: As the year's end is approaching, Enforcement Directorate (ED) seem to be increasing its pace of action regarding school and municipalities recruitment cases in West Bengal.

Nine different teams of ED, each heavily escorted by armed personnel of the central armed police forces, are conducting parallel raids and search operations at nine different locations across Kolkata since Thursday morning.

Sources aware of the development said that the raids are being conducted at premises of those who have common links with school jobs and municipalities jobs cases.

One of the nine places where ED is currently conducting raid is the office of chartered accountant Rajesh Doshi at Canning Street in central Kolkata. However, the investigators have so far remained tight-lipped over the exact connection of the office of this chartered accountant with these recruitment cases.

At the same time, another team is conducting a parallel search operations at the residences of two businessmen, namely Subodh Sachar and Ashok Dhanuka, at a posh housing complex at Maniktala in north Kolkata.

Sources said that during the course of investigation, on the money trail in there two related recruitment cases, the central agency has identified the involvement of a number of individuals including chartered accountants and businessmen, in diverting the alleged scam proceeds through multiple channels like shell corporate entities and international hawal links.

According to sources, the overseas hawala links mainly operated in the Kolkata-Mumbai- Dubai route, where Kolkata was the source of the proceeds generation and Dubai was its final destination via Mumbai.

Sources said that ED is quite sure that Dubai is not the only overseas hawala link that was used in proceeds diversion in these alleged scams. Currently investigations are on in relation to tracking of other overseas destinations where these proceeds were diverted and invested.