In a money laundering case, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) questioned and recorded the assertion of Alankar Sawai, a “close aide” of Congress chief Rahul Gandhi. According to officers, the questioning was performed pertaining to the case in which TMC spokesperson Saket Gokhale was not too long ago arrested by the company in Gujarat.
They additional mentioned that Sawai was interrogated and in addition confronted with Gokhale in Ahmedabad over three days earlier this week. A former banker, Sawai is taken into account to be a detailed aide of Rahul Gandhi, and is acknowledged to be heading his analysis workforce.
The federal probe company summoned Sawai after it arrested 35-year-old Gokhale on January 25 whereas he was in the Gujarat Police’s custody in reference to alleged monetary irregularities in elevating funds via a crowd-funding platform.
ED questions Gokhale about Rs 23.54 lakh financial institution deposits
The ED, whereas searching for Gokhale’s remand on that day, had knowledgeable an Ahmedabad courtroom that when he was requested about Rs 23.54 lakh deposited in his checking account in money over a yr, Gokhale had informed the company that “this amount was given in cash by Alankar Sawai of the India National Congress for social media work and other consultancy”.
On being requested as to why Sawai had paid him in money, Gokhale acknowledged that solely Sawai can reply this query, the ED informed the courtroom in its remand paper. “Further, on being asked regarding any written agreement with Alankar Sawai in respect of social media work he stated that it was an only verbal agreement with Alankar Sawai,” the company mentioned.
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What ED says?
The ED alleged that these money deposits have been acquired by Gokhale when he was a member of the Trinamool Congress (TMC). Sawai is known to have been questioned about these situations and his assertion was recorded underneath the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).
According to official sources, the questioning and confronting of the 2 has not helped them unearth the fund path as acknowledged by Gokhale at the same time as Sawai purportedly denied making any money funds. It must be talked about right here that the money laundering case towards Gokhale stems from a Gujarat Police FIR.
(With inputs from PTI)
