ED raids IAS officer in money-laundering probe
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Tuesday searched the Greater Mohali Area Development Authority (GMDA) office in Mohali and places linked to IAS officer Vikas Garg, the Principal Secretary for Housing and Urban Development in Punjab. Officials said the operation is part of a money-laundering investigation under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).
Search teams also went to locations in SAS Nagar, Chandigarh, Ludhiana, and Delhi. ED teams, along with CRPF personnel, arrived at the GMADA headquarters in several vehicles. Investigators sealed at least three floors and collected mobile phones from senior officials while they checked files. The searches focused on records about land-use permissions, property auctions, external development charges, interest waivers, and alleged concessions given to private builders and developers.
The PMLA case is based on Punjab Police reports alleging irregularities in GMADA’s operations. Investigators are reviewing plot and commercial-site auctions, the approval of change-of-land-use permissions, and waivers of external development charges and interest that developers were supposed to pay. The agency is checking if statutory dues were reduced or avoided and if official decisions led to illegal profits.
One main issue is an alleged change-of-land-use and fee-evasion case worth about Rs 150 crore.
Projects being reviewed include Suntec City in New Chandigarh and other private developments. The ED says some developers got CLU permissions and project licences by submitting fake farmers’ consent letters and related documents. They then used these permissions to get GMADA licences and RERA registration.
Promoters are accused of taking large sums from investors without completing the required sale deeds or paying all statutory charges. In May, the agency had already searched about a dozen places in Mohali and Chandigarh connected to Suntec City, promoter Ajay Sehgal, ABS Townships, Altus Space Builders, Dhir Constructions, and their associates.
During one search in Kharar, cash was thrown out of a high-rise flat. Officials later claimed that some intermediaries helped builders who had not paid their dues and tried to get political protection for unpaid GMADA fees. Another issue is a reported waiver of almost `40 crore in non-construction charges and penal interest on a 1.13-acre food-court site in Sector 62, Mohali. This site was auctioned in 2015 at a reserve price of `32.50 crore.
Investigators have reviewed engineering reports on whether the land was free of legal issues and suitable for development.
The ED has called in current and former GMADA chief engineers and asked for the full file from the 2015 auction to now. The agency has also questioned senior officials from the Housing and Urban Development Department, including former Chief Secretary AnuragVerma, who led the department when several disputed decisions were made.
Officials have asked GMADA for records on CLU files, colony licences, approval notes, EDC ledgers, and financial dealings with developers for projects approved over several years.
Tuesday’s searches at the authority’s office and places linked to the Principal Secretary show a shift from earlier actions against builders and intermediaries to focusing on the official records themselves.
Investigators want to ascertain how land-conversion, auction, and waiver decisions were made and whether they led to money laundering.
No arrests were reported right after Tuesday’s operation. Investigators will compare documents taken from GMADA and related offices with earlier evidence and statements.
The agency is still examining both alleged investor fraud by private developers and the role public authorities played in providing regulatory and financial relief.
