The Enforcement Directorate filed the complaint against the officer for accepting payments from...
Digital Desk: The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) arrested an Enforcement Directorate (ED) official on Monday for allegedly receiving bribes totalling Rs 5 crore from businessman Amandeep Singh Dhall, an accused in the Delhi excise policy case. Pawan Khatri, an Assistant Director at the ED, was one of two employees charged with bribery against whom the inquiry agency filed a case.
At the request of the ED, the CBI filed an FIR against the two accused officers, Pawan Khatri, an Assistant Director, and Nitesh Kohar, an Upper Divisional Clerk.
Deepak Sangwan, an Air India employee, arrested businessman Amandeep Singh Dhall, Gurugram resident Birender Pal Singh, Praveen Kumar Vats, a chartered accountant, Vikramaditya, the CEO of Claridges Hotels, and a few more officials are among those charged in the case.
According to the ED complaint, it learned that Amandeep Singh Dhall and Birender Pal Singh gave Praveen Vats Rs 5 crore between December 2022 and January 2023 to arrange for assistance in the ongoing probe into the Delhi excise policy issue.
In his statement to the ED, Praveen Vats stated that Deepak Sangwan had informed him that he would help arrange for Amandeep Dhall's protection from arrest in exchange for a sum of money. In December 2022, Sangwan introduced Vats to ED officer Pawan Khatri.
Going through the whole story:
Praveen Vats obtained Rs 3 crore from Amandeep Dhall in six instalments of Rs 50 lakh each from December 2022 to January 2023, based on Deepak Sangwan's promise. Deepak Sangwan later told Vats that for an additional Rs 2 crore, Amandeep Singh Dhall could be removed from the case's accused list.
Praveen Vats informed Amandeep Dhall about the situation, and once the businessman agreed to the idea, he took Rs 2 crore more from Vats in four tranches of Rs 50 lakh each.
Praveen Vats further informed the ED that he sent Deepak Sangwan and Pawan Khatri Rs 50 lakh as advance payment from the money he received from Amandeep Singh Dhall's father. The money was made in cash, and the handover took place in a parking area outside the ITC Hotel in Vasant Vihar around the middle of December 2022.
Despite Sangwan's assurances, Amandeep Dhall was arrested by the ED on March 1, 2023. Following his detention, Praveen Vats met with Deepak Sangwan, who stated that the arrest instructions came from higher authorities and that he had no influence over them.
In his testimony to the ED, Deepak Sangwan stated that he met with Praveen in June to discuss the restitution of the money seized from Dhall's family. The two accused ED officials, Pawan Khatri and Nitesh Kohar, were also present at a handful of these sessions.
The bribes were taken by specific ED personnel, according to the top officer in charge of the inquiry into the excise policy scheme.
ED officers subsequently launched an investigation and searched the homes of the accused in the case, including suspected probe agency employees. The search team discovered Rs 2.19 crore in cash and Rs 1.94 crore in diamond jewels from Praveen Vats' home. In addition, he had Rs 2.62 crore in his bank account.
Praveen Vats' home also had two luxury cars seized by the ED. The investigation agency also took more incriminating evidence from the homes of the other defendants in the case, including ED officials.
India Today reports reveal that the two accused ED officials were not part of the team investigating the excise policy scheme. They intended to extort Rs 30 million from Amandeep Singh Dhall.
Following the filing of the FIR, the CBI searched the premises associated with the accused at the request of the ED.
Leave A Comment