Moin Qureshi-Saga: Former CBI director may be booked under PMLA
Former CBI director AP Singh may be booked under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act for his involvement with controversial meat exporter Moin Qureshi. The ED may soon attach his properties in money laundering cases. The ED said they already had "concrete evidence" against Singh. The CBI had earlier booked him under the Prevention of Corruption Act.
Moin Qureshi
Moin Akhtar Qureshi entered the world of meat business in 1993 with a small abbatoir at Rampur in Uttar Pradesh. Moin was a graduate from Delhi's St Stephen's College and was an active member of the college's alumni, which helped him expand his network. Soon enough, in a span of ten years, he became one of the top meat exporters in India.
Moin Qureshi's businesses
After the start of his small slaughterhouse in Kanpur, Moin Qureshi established nearly 25 companies which spanned sectors such as fashion and construction. AMQ Agro, although, was his flagship firm.
Investigation launched against Qureshi's assets
In 2011, Qureshi hosted an extravagant wedding for his daughter, with sufi singer Rahat Fateh Ali Khan entertaining guests. The singer was detained by revenue authorities for not disclosing foreign revenues worth Rs.56 lakh, which was the alleged fee he obtained for his performance. Three years later, I-T authorities conducted multiple raids for black money across 15 locations related to Qureshi.
Qureshi's alleged links with CBI's elite
After authorities launched tax probes and investigations against Qureshi's business, reports revealed that Qureshi had visited the then CBI director Ranjit Sinha nearly 70 times in a year. The investigations also revealed that he had been helping a majority of the agency's senior officers. This had a significant impact on the agency's decisions. Qureshi was also found to resort to hawala transactions.
Case against Qureshi deferred, flies to Dubai
Investigations against Qureshi revealed that he had stashed around Rs.200 crore in foreign banks. Charges were filed against him, but the case was deferred till December last year. Last month, Qureshi managed to leave India, despite a look-out notice issued against him. Reports stated that he sparked confusion amongst immigration officials when he informed them that the court voted against I-T's restraint.
Moin Qureshi to face I-T probe today
In a turn of events, meat exporter Moin Qureshi, who left the country last month, returned to India and is scheduled to face questioning today. Qureshi is facing charges for tax evasion, money laundering and other hawala transactions. The probes are being conducted by ED and I-T departments. The investigations will also be looking at the alleged role of senior officers in Qureshi's deals.
CBI books former chief AP Singh in corruption case
The CBI has named its former director A.P. Singh as an 'accused' in an alleged corruption case, where meat exporter Moin Qureshi is named as a middleman. After Singh's retirement, a tax evasion probe revealed that he and Qureshi interacted "on daily basis". Pradeep Koneru, an accused in a disproportionate assets case, was also found to request meetings with Singh.
