ED seizes Rs 14 cr unaccounted cash, jewellery, deeds from premises of names linked to coal scam
The Statesman | 24 November 2025
Enforcement Directorate personnel conducted raids at 44 locations in Bengal and Jharkhand on Friday and Saturday and recovered unaccounted cash totalling Rs 14 crores and substantial quantities of gold jewellery, along with 120 property deeds from offices and premises of persons connected with the coal smuggling racket, an official statement released last night said.
The coordinated raids were conducted in 20 premises in Jharkhand, including the establishments and entities of Lal Bahadur Singh, Anil Goyal, Sanjay Khemka, and Amar Mondal of Dhanbad and Dumka. Dhanbad’s Singh had allegedly let loose his 12 pet dogs to prevent the access of the ED sleuths, the officials said.
“Twentyfour premises of Narendra Kharka, Krishna Murari Kayal, Lokesh Singh and Yudhisthir Ghosh at and near Durgapur’s City Centre, as well as in Pandaveswar, Salt Lake, Kolkata, Purulia and Asansol in Bengal were raided,” the statement added. The raids were conducted at residences, offices and some illegal toll collection booths, which were possessed and allegedly run by these persons with links to the coal smuggling scam.
“The raids were based on multiple FIRs filed by the Bengal and Jharkhand police,” the officials said. The raids were carried out under Section 17 of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002. The provisions of the Act authorises the officials to search and seize property and records if they find reason to believe that money laundering has been committed.
Besides seizures of cash and wealth, ED claimed: “Various diaries and registers containing the description of illegal cash collection and their beneficiaries have also been seized.” The Central agency stated: “The FIRs by the police authorities of both the states indicated that a vast network is operating across the West Bengal-Jharkhand border that is involved in illegal supply of coal from Jharkhand to West Bengal with no valid documents.”
The officials were also assigned under Section 6 of the PMLA, 2002 that deals with the adjudication body appointed by the Centre to exercise powers conferred by the Act.