Amit Sharma

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, December 16

In yet another trap, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) seized Rs 30.71 lakh, including Rs 18 lakh in new currency, and 1.5 kg gold during a raid at the house of a tailor as part of its operations to check hawala trade in the wake of demonetisation.

Sources said ED sleuths raided the house of Joginder Pal Singh, Gurmeek Singh and Gurwinder Singh at Phase VII, Mohali. They are the owners of Maharaja Tailors in Sector 22.

The sources said Rs 18 lakh in Rs 2,000 and Rs 500 denomination was seized while Rs 75,000 was seized in Rs 50 denomination and the remaining currency was in Rs 100, Rs 20 and Rs 10 denomination.

The sources said the 1.5 kg gold recovered from the house was in the form of a gold brick weighing 1 kg, two biscuits of 100 gm each and the remaining in the form of gold coins.

The ED sleuths reached the house in the morning and searched the entire house.

The shop in Sector 22 was also searched by the sleuths.

The bank lockers were also searched. Enforcement Directorate officials said they would investigate the source of the new currency notes.

“The source of money is being investigated,” the sources said.

Banker held for exchanging demonetised currency

Two days after the ED seized Rs 2.19 crore — new currency notes valued at Rs 69,35,500 and Rs 1.5 crore in demonetised currency — during a raid at the house of Inderpal Mahajan, a local businessman, in Sector 22, the UT police arrested Bhupinder Singh Gill, an employee of HDFC Bank, Sector 70, Mohali. Inspector Ranjit Singh, SHO, Sector 17, said Gill was cluster head of security, share trading and the loan department in two states. “The accused used to charge between 20 and 25 per cent and get the demonetised currency exchanged,” the SHO said.