COVID-19 centres ‘scam’: IAS officer Sanjeev Jaiswal appears before ED

IAS officer Sanjeev Jaiswal on Friday appeared before the Enforcement Directorate in connection with a money laundering case related to alleged irregularities over jumbo COVID centres set up by Mumbai civic body BMC during the pandemic, an official said.

The Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer was seen entering the ED office at Ballard Estate in South Mumbai around 11.30 am.

The agency, which investigates offences of money laundering and violations of foreign exchange laws, had on June 21 raided 15 places linked to some people, including the IAS officer.

Jaiswal had served as an additional commissioner in the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC).

ED had recovered jewellery worth nearly Rs 2.4 crore, Rs 68 lakh cash and property-related documents during those raids, said the official.

Jaiswal had been asked to appear before the ED to record his statement on Friday in connection with the case, he said.

Jaiswal was summoned by the agency earlier too, but he had not appeared before it, he said. The ED raids of last week were conducted in Mumbai in connection with a money laundering case against businessman Sujit Patkar, who is believed to be a close associate of Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut.

Patkar and his three partners have been accused of bagging BMC contracts fraudulently for managing COVID-19 field hospitals during the pandemic, an official had said earlier. On June 26, Shiv Sena (UBT) functionary Suraj Chavan was questioned by the agency for more than eight hours in connection with the case. Chavan identifies himself as a secretary of the Shiv Sena led by former chief minister Uddhav Thackeray and a core committee member of the Yuva Sena, its youth wing, on his social media handle.