Based on the Justice M.B. Shah Commission of Inquiry report on illegal mining in Jharkhand, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) has registered a money-laundering case against an iron ore exporter, P.K. Jain, who allegedly operated in the Chaibasa area of West Singhbhum.
The ED has already registered two separate cases under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) in connection with the Justice Shah Commission report on illegal mining in Odisha and Goa.
The agency is in the process of collecting documents to quantify the money generated by the accused persons through illegal mining activities. Accordingly, the proceeds of crime so identified would be attached under PMLA provisions.
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The Union government constituted the Commission of Inquiry in November 2010 to probe illegal mining of iron ore and manganese ore in the country. It has so far submitted the first interim report, reports on Goa in three parts, two reports on illegal mining in Odisha and another exhaustive report on illegal mining activities in Jharkhand.
The four-volume findings on Jharkhand are yet to be tabled in Parliament along with the respective action taken reports.
In its report, the commission is learnt to have recommended that the violators in Jharkhand be made to cough up Rs. 14,403 crore for illegal iron ore mining and Rs. 138 crore for illegal manganese ore extraction. The commission has noted that the mine owners continued extraction work without fresh approvals.
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