Panchkula land scam: ED files chargesheet against Bhupinder Hooda and 21 others
Chandigarh, February 16(H S):The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Tuesday, has filed a chargesheet against former Haryana chief minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda and 21 others under the various sections of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002, before a special PMLA court in Panchkula. Those charge sheets include four retired IAS officers.
The case involved the allotment of 14 industrial plots worth ₹30 crores to the acquaintances of Hooda in 2013 on August 29, 2019.
The ED had initiated an investigation in 2015 based on an FIR by the Haryana Vigilance Bureau. The FIR was subsequently transferred to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in 2016, which registered the case under Sections 120-B, 201, 204, 409, 420, 467, 468, 471 of the Indian penal Code (IPC), and Section 13 of the Prevention of Corruption Act.
The investigation revealed that Hooda, as ex-officio chairman of Haryana Urban Development Authority (HUDA) and the four retired IAS officers – then office-bearers of the authority – illegally favoured the pre-selected acquaintances.
The ED also started investigations, alleging that the plots were allotted to those closer to the former CM. The next date of hearing is February 18.
