CA linked to Misa paid ~90 lakh in cash to Delhi’s Jain brothers: ED

A chartered accountant “linked” to a firm owned by Misa Bharti, daughter of RJD chief Lalu Prasad, paid ₹90 lakh in cash to Delhi’s Jain brothers, who were arrested on money laundering charges in March this year, sources in the Enforcement Directorate said.

The revelation comes even as the agency on Saturday raided three locations in Delhi allegedly connected to Bharti and her husband Shailesh Kumar. A senior ED official confirmed that the couple will be questioned as well.

Sources said accountant Rajesh Agarwal, who was arrested in May for acting as a “mediator” for Surendra Kumar Jain and Virendra Kumar Jain, paid the amount in 2007-08 to the brother-duo who invested it as share premium in Mishail Packers and Printers Pvt Ltd, a publishing firm in which Bharti and her husband are directors and hold shares.

“Some 1,20,000 shares of the firm were bought during 2007-08 at a rate of ₹100 per share by four shell companies — Shalini Holdings Ltd, Ad-Fin Capital Services (India) Pvt Ltd, Mani Mala Delhi Properties Pvt Ltd, and Diamond Vinimay Pvt Ltd.

The same shares were then bought back by Bharti at ₹10 per share,” a senior ED official told HT, adding they suspect an agricultural land in Delhi was also purchased using this money.

Barring Kolkata’s Diamond, all three firms are registered in Delhi. On Saturday, ED officials raided Shakuntala farmhouse in Delhi’s Ghitorni area, Sainik farm and Biswajan where Bharti’s firm is registered.

Officials said Bharti’s firm was registered at Tughlaq Road until the shares were bought back. In 2009-10, the address was changed to 26, Palam farms, Bijwasan.