ED seizes Rs 3 crore cash after raids in Jharkhand related to IAS officer Pooja Singhal

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Friday seized Rs 3 crore cash linked to suspended IAS officer Pooja Singhal during a raid at Hazaribag residence one Md. Ezhar Ansari.

Md. Ezhar Ansari controls a group of private companies, informed ED sources. "The raid was conducted to investigate anomalies in the captive coal consumption case. In this regard, raids were also carried out against former coal and sand in-charge of the Jharkhand State Mineral Development Corporation (JSMDC) Ashok Kumar Singh, ED sources added.

In 2007 the state government had brought a policy to provide coal to small and medium enterprises at cheap rates through coal mines of the companies of the central government undertakings.

The JSMDC became the nodal agency for the supply of coal to such small and medium enterprises. ED raids are underway at multiple locations in Jharkhand. 14 locations at Ranchi and Hazaribag are being raided, added the sources.

In May, the Enforcement Directorate arrested Jharkhand mining secretary Pooja Singhal in connection with a money-laundering probe linked to the alleged embezzlement of MGNREGA funds and other charges.

She was the second arrest in this case as ED already arrests Chartered Accountant Suman Kumar on May 7. ED recovered Rs 17.51 crore from the premises of Kumar and Rs 1.8 crore from pulse Hospital.

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Singhal was arrested after ED got credible evidence of her connection with CA Suman Kumar. Pooja Singhal is the secretary of the Department of Mines and Geology and the Managing Director of Jharkhand State Mineral Development Corporation Limited (JSMDC).Further investigation is underway.