Itanagar, Feb 6: The Enforcement Directorate on February 6 carried out extensive raids across Arunachal Pradesh and seized Rs 2.2 crore in cash as part of its money laundering investigation into the alleged Trans-Arunachal Highway compensation scam, officials said.
The probe centres on suspected large-scale irregularities in the calculation and distribution of land acquisition compensation for the Trans-Arunachal Highway project, which investigators believe caused an estimated loss of around Rs 44 crore to the state exchequer. Officials said the case involves manipulation of beneficiary records and inflated compensation claims.
ED teams conducted coordinated searches at eight locations across the state, including six premises in Itanagar, one in Likabali in Lower Siang district, and another in Aalo in West Siang district near the inter-state border. The seized cash was recovered from the premises of an individual identified by investigators as a fake beneficiary in the compensation process.
As part of the operation, the agency also searched the residences of the former deputy commissioner of Ziro, officials associated with the District Land Revenue and Settlement Office, assessment officers involved in the compensation process, and several private individuals suspected of acting as intermediaries in the alleged scam.
Officials said the searches are part of a broader effort to trace the flow of illicit funds and identify all those involved in the alleged misuse of public money. Further investigation is underway to establish the extent of the financial irregularities and fix accountability.
