ED finds Rs 60cr ‘financial irregularities’ in TMC MP-linked newspaper during 24-hour-long searches
KOLKATA: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has detected alleged financial irregularities involving around Rs 60 crore in an Urdu newspaper linked to Trinamool Congress Rajya Sabha MP Nadimul Haque, officials said on Tuesday.
The findings came during searches that continued for more than 24 hours at premises linked to Haque and his media entity. The searches began on the morning of September 7 and concluded early Tuesday.
An ED official said financial records and digital documents were being examined to trace the transactions and establish the nature and source of the funds under investigation. Investigators are also examining whether some of the transactions were routed through informal channels such as hawala.
The searches covered seven locations across Kolkata, Delhi and Ranchi, including the office of the Urdu daily Akhbar-E-Mashriq in Kolkata and premises linked to Haque. The agency also questioned the TMC MP during the operation.
According to ED sources, investigators found discrepancies in transactions worth around Rs 60 crore for which satisfactory supporting records were not immediately available. The agency is now examining whether the transactions represented genuine business dealings or involved movement of funds through informal channels.
The probe is being conducted under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) and stems from an FIR registered by the Bidhannagar Police Commissionerate. The investigation remains ongoing, with the agency examining documents and digital material seized during the searches.
