EOW Kashmir conducts house searches in Covid-era procurement fraud case, huge amounts siphoned off

SRINAGAR: The Economic Offences Wing (EOW), Kashmir, on Thursday, carried out house searches at three locations in Srinagar and Budgam in connection with a Covid-era medical procurement fraud case.

Searches were conducted under Sections 420, 467, 468, 471, and 120-B of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), read with Section 66-D of the IT Act, at the Police Station Economic Offences Wing, Srinagar. The case was initiated on the basis of a written complaint submitted by Sanjay Trading Company, Najafgarh, New Delhi, through its proprietor, Sanjay Kumar Sahu.

The complainant alleged that Emad Muzafar Makdoomi, alias Imran Shah, and Vikar Ahmad Bhat dishonestly induced the firm on the pretext of procuring medical supplies during the Covid-19 pandemic.

A preliminary probe revealed that the accused persons, through deceitful means, fraudulently obtained huge amounts, including funds from the office of the Deputy Commissioner, Anantnag. They also attempted to siphon off crores of rupees from the Government Medical College, Srinagar.

The accused individuals impersonated government officials, posing as delegates and OSD (Supplies), and issued fake allotment orders of various departments and institutions. They further created fake email IDs of the complainant firm and opened fraudulent bank accounts in its name to divert payments.

On the basis of these findings, a formal case has been registered, and the investigation has been set into motion. The house searches conducted today are aimed at securing further evidence, including digital records and financial documents. Further investigation is underway.

Meanwhile, the Counter-Intelligence Kashmir (CIK) on Thursday conducted raids across multiple locations in the union territory, with operations underway in Srinagar, Shopian, and Ganderbal districts.

According to CIK, the searches are being conducted in connection with a fresh terror investigation case registered recently at Police Station CIK. The searches are backed by a search warrant issued by the Court.

The CIK investigation is probing a terror module directed by Shabir Ahmad Lone, a Kashmir-native LeT operator based in Bangladesh. Lone, a native of Kangan Ganderbal, is reportedly operating from Bangladesh and is linked to the Pakistan-based terror group Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT). (ANI)