ED raids close aides of suspended Invest UP boss in graft case
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According to officials, ED teams accompanied by paramilitary forces searched the residences of Nikant Jain in Viram Khand, his associate Saurabh Seth in Vishal Khand, and a hotel in Niralanagar.
These raids were carried out under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) and yielded several incriminating documents which are being analysed. The ED is probing whether a Rs2.5 crore cheque issued by Rajendra Singh to Jain was a disguised bribe for securing official clearance for a solar project.
Singh reportedly told investigators that the cheque was issued for purchasing a property from Jain but was unable to provide any concrete details regarding the transaction, raising further suspicion.
During the raids, Saurabh Seth, who is listed as a director in one of Jain's firms, claimed he was initially an employee and was later made director. However, ED officials discovered that Seth is listed as a director in at least five companies, including two directly linked to Jain.
At the time of the raid, Jain's wife was present at the residence but denied any knowledge about her husband's business operations.
ED officials seized documents from both the residence and Jain's office. Raids and questioning continued till late Thursday night. Jain was previously arrested by the Lucknow police in connection with a bribery case where a 5% commission was allegedly demanded to approve a solar energy project by the company Solar P-6 under the state-run Invest UP platform. The controversy led to the suspension of then-CEO Abhishek Prakash.
The state govt had handed over the probe to a three-member SIT, which later filed a chargesheet against Jain.
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