The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Wednesday searched multiple locations, including the premises linked to Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot’s brother Agrasen, in connection with an alleged scam in the illegal export of a subsidised fertiliser component meant for sale to farmers.
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The searches were carried out at Rajasthan, Gujarat, Mumbai and West Bengal. The case pertains to the alleged illegal export of potassium chloride, known as Muriate of Potash (MoP), to Malaysia and Taiwan from 2007 to 2009. The MoP had been provided on subsidised rates for distribution among farmers.
“Three parties were involved in the illegal export, which included Jodhpur-based Anupam Krishi owned by Mr. Agrasen Gehlot. His company allegedly made ₹150 crore through export of 35,000 metric tonnes of MoP. The other parties also made huge financial gains,” said an agency official.
The alleged illegal export of the restricted commodity was first detected by the Ahmedabad zone of Directorate of Revenue Intelligence in 2013. Based on the findings, the Commissioner of Customs later imposed penalty of about ₹7 crore on the accused persons. A prosecution complaint was also filed.
Based on the prosecution complaint, the ED was conducting investigations under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, the official said.
It is alleged that the companies had indulged in forgery of transaction records to conceal the chain of operations. The MoP was shown as feldspar power or salt to evade detection, for which fake bills were also generated by various entities.
