The Enforcement Directorate on Tuesdat conducted raids on the premises of RJD MLA Kiran Devi, her husband and former legislator Arun Yadav, and others as part of a money laundering investigation related to alleged possession of disproportionate assets, according to official sources.
Kiran Devi currently serves as an MLA of the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), led by Lalu Prasad, representing the Sandesh constituency in Bhojpur district. Arun Yadav held the seat from 2015 to 2020.
When ED officials arrived at Kiran Devi's residence on Tuesday morning, the MLA was reportedly not present. Searches were also conducted at premises associated with the MLA in Bhojpur's Agiaon.
Despite several attempts by PTI, the RJD MLA was unavailable for comment on the Enforcement Directorate's actions.
The ED's money laundering case against Arun Yadav and Kiran Devi is based on 16 FIRs filed by the Bihar Police at various police stations in Ara district. The agency initiated a criminal case under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) against the couple in 2021.
Previously, the ED had recorded statements from Arun Yadav and some family members as part of the investigation, obtaining property documents and bank account statements of the Yadav family and a related entity, Kiran Durga Contractors Pvt Ltd.
According to sources, the investigation revealed that the Yadav family acquired approximately 72 immovable assets, including agricultural lands, flats, and residential plots, valued at Rs 9.90 crore in Ara district and Patna. Additionally, they allegedly made cash deposits totaling Rs 20.5 crore between 2002-03 and 2021-22.
These assets and cash deposits, allegedly disproportionate to their known and legal sources of income, are under scrutiny by the Enforcement Directorate.
Arun Yadav is also being investigated by central probe agencies in connection with the land-for-job scam involving RJD supremo Lalu Prasad and his family members. In addition, Yadav and Kiran Devi are subjects of ED scrutiny in relation to the illegal sand mining case, with the agency conducting raids on them last year as part of these investigations.
(Inputs from PTI)