The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has arrested Tarini Group chairman Vakamulla Chandrashekar in connection with a money laundering case against former Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh.
Mr. Chandrashekar has been accused of laundering ₹5.9 crore of Mr. Singh, when he was a Union Minister. The probe is based on an FIR registered by the Central Bureau of Investigation against Mr. Singh and others in October 2015.
The two agencies have also filed charge sheets in their respective cases, alleging he had amassed over ₹10 crore in disproportionate assets.
Mr. Chandrashekar had purportedly given ₹5.9 crore to Mr. Singh and his family members through his three personal bank accounts.
“When the source of funds was inquired into, it came to light that the amount was received through a web of firms indulging in accommodation entry operation,” said an ED official.
The agency alleged that a majority of these firms were opened in the name of employees with meagre salaries. Most of the entries were given by one Ram Prakash Bhatia, who created fake sale proceed invoices of his various firms to show agricultural income of Mr. Chandrashekar.
The accommodation entries provided to Mr. Chandrashekar in his personal bank accounts were facilitated by Vineet Mishra, the former HDFC branch manager at Delhi’s Mansrover Garden branch, through various firms and individuals.
“Of the total funds, ₹3.9 crore was shown as loan for renovation of Mr. Singh’s palace. But it was used for personal use and fixed deposits in various banks. The amount was returned only when the Income Tax Department started a probe. A large part of the sum was mainly infused in Mr. Chandrashekar’s two companies: Tarini International Ltd and Tarini Infrastructure,” said the agency.
The ED also found that ₹1.19 crore in cash was handed over by Mr. Chandrashekar to Mr. Mishra, most of which was further used for investments in shares of Tarini Infrastructure in the name of Mr. Singh’s family members.
