- Illustrative photo.
NEW DELHI: In the biggest gold seizure in Madhya Pradesh so far, teams from the Income Tax (IT) Department and Bhopal Police confiscated 54 kg of gold bars worth around Rs 41 crore, and Rs 10 crore in cash from an abandoned Innova car parked inside a farmhouse in Mendori village in the Ratibad area on the outskirts of Bhopal in Madhya Pradesh.
The seizure was made in the wee hours of Friday (Dec 20) on a tip-off.
The massive recovery came just hours after Lokayukta teams raided the house and office of real estate agent Saurabh Sharma in the posh E-7 locality of Arera Colony in Bhopal.
The Lokayukta team recovered 2.34 quintals of silver and Rs 2 crore in cash from Sharma’s house.
Sources said that the gold and cash seized from the Innova car could be connected to Saurabh Sharma, as the two incidents occurred in a gap of some hours.
The Innova car (MP 07 BA 0050) reportedly belongs to one Chetan Singh Gaur, a close associate of Saurabh Sharma.
Sharma was a constable in the Madhya Pradesh Transport Department but took Voluntary Retirement from Service (VRS) last year and began his real estate agency.
The Innova car had an RTO (Regional Transport Officer) plate on its windshield and officials also recovered a beret of the MP Transport Department inside the vehicle.
All these factors strongly suggest that the gold and cash found inside the car are linked to Saurabh Sharma.
Officials are still trying to ascertain the exact links, with investigations underway to determine the rightful owner of the gold and cash.
Meanwhile, sources said Saurabh Sharma has fled to either Mumbai or Dubai.
Sharma is said to have close links with a minister in the Madhya Pradesh government, as well as several other politicians and serving and retired bureaucrats.
The raids on Sharma’s premises and the subsequent gold seizure have brought to light an alleged nexus involving politicians, government officers, and real estate entities in Madhya Pradesh. Sources said the recovered cash could be part of the black money stashed by politicians and bureaucrats with Sharma.
The raids were part of marathon search operations conducted by IT Department sleuths in Bhopal over the past two days, focusing on prominent builders. Sources suggest that builders under investigation have ties with prominent politicians and bureaucrats.
One of the targeted builders, Rajesh Sharma of Trishul Constructions, was raided by the Income Tax department. He is reportedly close to a very senior former bureaucrat and influential people, who allegedly helped him in getting contracts for significant projects.
During the searches, IT sleuths recovered Rs 3 crore in cash, gold jewellery worth lakhs, and documents related to land and property acquisitions. Police also found about 10 lockers belonging to Rajesh Sharma, along with documents detailing the purchase of 5 acres of land.
The IT raids continued at around 55 locations in Bhopal on Saturday as well. Builders under scrutiny include Munna Agrawal and Vinod Agrawal of Kwality Builders, Tejendar Pal and Balvinder Pal of Ishan Builders, along with other prominent builders in Bhopal.
Further investigations are underway. The Enforcement Directorate (ED) is likely to take cognisance of the matter soon, sources said. - The Statesman/ANN
