Enforcement Directorate investigating IAS Joshi’s case
BHOPAL: Enforcement Directorate found in investigating of the tainted Madhya Pradesh-based IAS couple, that the billionaire bureaucrats had parked their ill-gotten wealth in properties in Bhopal, Guwahati and even the US and Germany.
They investigated that the IAS couple kept exploring ways to invest the black money and ended up putting it in insurance policies, stock market, flats and plots.
The ED official said, “In the US, the investments are in the name of their children who had gone there as students and one of them has recently got a job. In Germany, the money has been parked in the name of Arvind’s sister. The money abroad is also stashed in stock market and companies where we believe Joshi’s children are partners. Investigations have also revealed that Arvind with help of a Delhi-based realtor has allegedly stashed crores in properties in Assam.”
The zonal office of enforcement directorate, Ahmedabad, which also covers MP region, has started attaching movable assets of the duo. So far, assets worth Rs 6.5 cr of the couple, mostly insurance policies in the name of Arvind’s father H M Joshi, a retired inspector general of MP police, have been attached. ED started confiscation of assets after it came to know that Arvind had sold a plot worth Rs 92 lakh in Bhopal last month. Sources said that ED is now trying to dig out details of their investments in the US and Germany.
ED has also found that the couple had an understanding with a private insurance firm employee who helped them invest bribe money. “The Joshi couple has invested lot of money in insurance polices in their parents’ names. We have attached insurance policies worth Rs 3.5 crore. All the policies of Arvind’s parents had him as the nominee, despite the fact that the officer has three siblings,” said an ED official.
Sources have also revealed that during interrogation, Arvind refused to divulge details about the whereabouts of his children and the universities they have studied in.
“Tinu didn’t turn up for quizzing, while Arvind kept information up his sleeve and on many occasions, refused to part with details. Also, when asked about the cash found during raids, he said that his father had kept the money at his place without his knowledge,” said an ED official.
In February 2010 Income-tax (I-T) officials had raided the premises of Arvind Joshi, principal secretary (Jail), and his wife Tinu Joshi, principal secretary ( Women and Child Development).
The I-T sleuths recovered Rs 3.06 crore cash, including Rs 7 lakh foreign currency from the couple who we-re later suspended. The Joshis’ assets include a breath-taking 25 flats and 400 acres of land estimated to be worth more than Rs 360 crore by I-T department.
In December last year, MP Lokayukta raided the babus and found Rs 7 lakh cash at the Joshis’ residence in a posh Bhopal locality, besides Rs 12 lakh in their salary accounts. In January this year, ED registered a money laundering case against the 1979-batch IAS officials.
