A special PMLA court in Jalandhar has denied bail to former Punjab minister Bharat Bhushan Ashu in a money-laundering case linked to a ₹2,000-crore foodgrain transportation scam. Ashu was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) on August 1.
The ED has submitted a comprehensive chargesheet against Ashu, his associate Rajdeep Singh Nagra, and 29 others, including officials from the Punjab food and civil supplies department. The chargesheet, filed under Sections 3 (offense of money laundering) and 4 (punishment for money laundering) of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), follows an investigation initiated after the Punjab Vigilance Bureau (VB) registered multiple FIRs against Ashu and others related to the tender scam.
Investigations revealed that Ashu allegedly favored select contractors in tender allotments, promising them inflated profits. In return, he reportedly received bribes through Nagra, Rakesh Kumar Singla, and other associates, including several government officials. The bribe funds were then laundered to acquire movable and immovable properties using a network of shell companies, according to the ED spokesperson.
On August 24, 2022, ED teams seized ₹6 crore, four bank lockers, and numerous incriminating documents and digital devices during raids at locations associated with Ashu and his accomplices, along with ₹30 lakh in unaccounted cash. Further raids on September 4 in Khanna and Issru village led to Nagra’s arrest.
On August 16, 2022, the VB filed a case against Ashu, his assistant Pankaj Kumar (alias Menu Malhotra), and several officials and contractors for causing significant losses to the state through irregularities in the labor, cartage, and transportation tenders for grain markets in Ludhiana district. The FIR includes charges under various IPC sections, including cheating and criminal conspiracy, as well as multiple sections of the Prevention of Corruption Act.
The preliminary chargesheet from the VB indicated that the tenders for transportation and labor during Ashu’s ministerial tenure were manipulated, with the list of vehicles submitted by contractors containing unverified registration numbers of scooters, motorcycles, and cars, indicating collusion among officials.
