The Enforcement Directorate is working in close coordination with the Income Tax Department for their probe into the overlays contracts award ED during the Commonwealth Games and may soon summon the firms concerned. According to official sources, the IT department will share documents seized by it during the nationwide searches carried out by it last month regarding the Games probe.
Sources said the ED is likely to soon issue summons to the firms that undertook the overlays work for the Commonwealth Games as part of its probe into alleged FEMA violations during the sporting extravaganza.
They said while the Directorate is probing the alleged irregularities committed during the Queen’s Baton Relay, the overlays contracts which run into about Rs 800 crore have come under the scanner as some foreign players are also involved.
The ED sources said has already questioned a senior official of Comfort Net-Nussli India consortium as part of its probe. It is also looking at the possibility of registering a case under Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) with regard to the alleged CWG scam.
Sources said the turning point was the CBI’s move of registering an FIR in the Queen’s Baton Relay naming former senior officials of the Organising Committee of the Games besides unknown officials.
While the ED is probing the officials under the Foreign Exchange Management Act, PMLA would allow them to go in for a detailed investigation which would involve arrests as well as attachment of properties.
At present, a PMLA case can be registered against an individual or a company only after a criminal FIR is registered either by the police, vigilance department or other investigative agencies like the CBI.
Incidentally, the firms which carried out overlays contracts work were searched by the Income Tax department during its nationwide raids last month as part of its investigations into alleged tax evasion by companies involved in the Games preparations.
The consortia, including foreign entities, which were searched by the I-T department were identified as PICO international and Deepali Designs, G L Litmus and Meroform consortium, Comfort Net and Nussli India consortium and ESG Arena and D-Art furniture and they were estimated to have bagged contracts worth about Rs 800 crore.
