ED attaches assets of former U.P. Minister

The Enforcement Directorate has attached assets worth ₹5 crore of former Uttar Pradesh Minister Rangnath Mishra and others in connection with a disproportionate assets case against him.

Mr. Mishra was the Minister for Secondary Education and Home during 2007-11 in the Bahujan Samaj Party government.

Sacked by Mayawati

The then Chief Minister, Mayawati, had sacked him after the Lokayukta’s indictment for alleged corruption.

The agency has attached two residential plots in Allahabad under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act. The properties are in the name of Mr. Mishra and his family members. They were allegedly acquired by him in 2010.

The ED probe is based on an FIR registered by the State Vigilance Department, following a recommendation by the Lokayukta. Initial inquiry had revealed that Mr. Mishra’s actual income between May 13, 2007, and October 5, 2011, was about ₹1.57 crore, but he had allegedly spent more than ₹7.61 crore. Further investigation into the sources of assets purchased by the former Minister and his family members in the name of a trust named “Samiti” and institutes is under way, said the agency.