VIJAY
Ranchi, Feb 24: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has sent a reminder to the Jharkhand government whether it intends to lodge an FIR of corruption and disproportionate assets against IAS officer Pooja Singhal.
In December last year the ED had submitted a report to the Jharkhand government about Pooja Singhal and asked it to lodge an FIR. But no action has been taken so far.
The ED arrested the then mining secretary Pooja Singhal in May last year for embezzlement in the MNREGA scam in Khunti district during 2009-10 when she was the deputy commissioner.
In December last year, the ED had dispatched a detailed report to the office of Jharkhand Chief Secretary Sukhdev Singh containing evidence of her involvement and disproportionate assets raised by her. The ED had stated the agency attached her properties worth Rs. 82.77 Crore in the MNREGA scam.
The ED has told the government that it should ask Pooja Singhal to explain sources of her assets. It will be proper for the state government to lodge an FIR against her under the Prevention of Corruption Act, the ED has said.
The ED arrested her in May last year for committing a scam worth Rs. Rs.18.06 crore in the execution of MNREGA scheme in Khunti district. She was posted as DC during 16th February 2009 to 19th July 2010 and she was the principal authority for sanctioning funds for different development projects.
“As per the rule a report regarding attached assets of the IAS officer was sent to the government. The matter is related to the MNREGA scam. As it is a grave case of corruption the ED had asked the state government to lodge an FIR against her. The ED has sent a fresh reminder to the state government” well-placed sources said.
In the recent time this is the second such report that the ED has submitted to the state government regarding involvement of Pooja Singhal in any scam. Earlier, the ED had submitted a report related to her involvement in the illegal mining scam worth Rs. 1000 Crore. In this case also the ED asked the state government to prosecute her as well as some other district mining officers. There are hints that if the state government delays or denies in lodging FIR against the IAS the agency would approach the High Court for suitable direction.
The ED provisionally attached immovable properties worth Rs. 82.77 crore belonging to Pooja Singhal. This includes one Super Speciality Hospital namely ‘Pulse Super Speciality Hospital’, one diagnostics centre namely ‘Pulse Diagnostic and Imagining Centre’ and two land parcels situated in Ranchi.
