PMLA Case: JKCA Lays Claim Of Attached Properties Of Accused

Jammu- The Jammu and Kashmir Cricket Association (JKCA) has filed an appeal before a court in Srinagar laying claim on the attached properties of the four main accused in the cricket body money laundering case, a statement issued by the association on Friday night said.

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) had in July filed a supplementary charge sheet against former president of JKCA and ex-chief minister Farooq Abdullah and others, including Ahsan Ahmad Mirza and Mir Manzoor Gazanffer, in connection with its probe in the money laundering case. The court has already issued notices to the accused for appearing before it on August 27.

The JKCA has filed an appeal before the court of principal district and sessions judge, special court for Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) cases, Srinagar. Brigadier (retd) Anil Gupta, Member Administration, JKCA, said the association filed three different appeals in the court laying claim on the attached properties of Abdullah, Gazanffer, Mirza and ex-office bearers of JKCA who had conspired together to siphon off crores of rupees received from the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI).

As per an estimate, funds amounting to a tune of Rs 43.69 crore (which ED now claims to be over 50 crores) were siphoned off between 2002-2011 from the accounts of JKCA using dubious means deliberately ignoring the laid down rules and procedures. The ED so far has attached assets worth Rs 21.55 crore belonging to the three accused, Gupta said.

In its appeal, the JKCA has submitted that according to the investigations conducted by the CBI and the ED, the accused persons had conspired to siphon off funds of JKCA for their personal benefit and have thereby generated proceeds of crime’ while committing scheduled offenses of criminal conspiracy, said senior advocate Sunil Sethi, Member Legal Affairs, JKCA.

The JKCA has appealed to the court that the said proceeds of crime’ had been used by the accused including Abdullah in acquiring the huge assets which now stand attached by the ED. It said the JKCA has a legitimate interest in the attached assets of the three accused persons since it has suffered a quantifiable loss as a result of money laundering of its monies by the accused.

The crores of money siphoned off by the accused was actually meant for the development of cricket infrastructure in the then state of Jammu and Kashmir, now the UTs J-K and Ladakh.

“Had it been used judiciously for the intended purpose, many cricketers belonging to J-K would have risen to the national and international levels. The inadequacy of infrastructure continues to haunt the cricketing activities in J-K and Ladakh, stated Mithun Manhas, Member Cricket Operations and Development, JKCA.