Gomti River Front Project: ED attaches immovable properties of accused engineers worth Rs 1 crore

LUCKNOW: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has attached five immovable properties of accused engineers worth Rs 1 crore approximately under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002, (PMLA) in connection with the alleged irregularities in Gomti River Front Project case.

The properties attached by the ED include a plot owned by Roop Singh Yadav, three plots owned by Anil Yadav and one residential flat belonging to SN Sharma - all engineers associated with the project.

Investigation under the provisions of PMLA was initiated on the basis of an FIR registered at the Gomti Nagar Police Station in Lucknow against eight engineers for alleged technical, administrative and financial irregularities in the Gomti River Front Project.

During the investigation, searches were conducted wherein incriminating evidence relating to mode, amount and manner of payment of bribes to certain engineers, namely Roop Singh Yadav, Anil Yadav and SN Sharma were seized. 

It is revealed that the bribe amounts were collected from the contractors who had made the payments to these engineers by withdrawing the amounts from the bank accounts and subsequently paying the engineers in cash and also through banking transactions. 

Equivalent properties relating to the bribe amount received by Roop Singh Yadav, Anil Yadav and SN Sharma totalling approximately Rs 1 crore have been attached under the provisions of PMLA. 

The investigation further reveals that the accused engineers used financial profile of their wives’ to channelise, place, layer and project illegally earned money by misuse of voluntary Undisclosed Income Declaration Scheme, 2016 of the Government of India.  

Investigation in the case is still in progress and the ED is likely to attach further properties involved in money laundering and prosecute the persons involved in money laundering.