Chhangur Baba alias Jalaluddin was remanded to the Enforcement Directorate (ED) custody on Monday by a special Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) court in Lucknow.
The court was hearing a case related to a money laundering investigation against Chhangur and his associates linked to an alleged illegal conversion racket in Uttar Pradesh, officials said.
According to a PTI report, Chhangur Baba alias Jalaluddin alias Karimulla Shah has been in jail in the predicate offence case being investigated by the Uttar Pradesh Police’s Anti-Terrorist Squad (ATS). The ED had applied to the court for his custody following which it was allowed a five-day remand of the accused till August 1, the officials said.
He will be questioned in jail and his statement will be recorded under the PMLA, they added.
₹60 crore in 22 bank accounts
Earlier this month, the federal agency had conducted searches at Chhangur’s native place in Balrampur district and two locations in Mumbai. The ED had said that the accused had received funds worth ₹60 crore in 22 bank accounts, including “large amounts” from abroad.
The money-laundering case against Chhangur Baba stems from the ATS FIR filed at a police station in Lucknow’s Gomti Nagar under various sections of the Indian Penal Code and the Uttar Pradesh Prohibition of Unlawful Religious Conversion Act, 2021.
Chhangur Baba, his son Mehboob and alleged associates Naveen Rohra alias Jamaluddin and Neetu Rohra alias Nasreen were arrested by the ATS. They are currently lodged in a jail.
What are the allegations against Chhangur Baba and associates?
Chhangur Baba has been accused of being involved in a “large-scale” conspiracy which includes religious conversions, utilisation of foreign funds, and activities posing a potential threat to national security, as reported by PTI.
The ED said, “Chhangur Baba and his associates are alleged to have established an extensive network operating from the premises of the Chand Auliya Dargah in Balrampur, where he regularly organised large gatherings attended by both Indian and foreign nationals.”
“He is accused of systematically inducing, coercing, and manipulating indiduals of other faiths, particularly Scheduled Castes, and economically disadvantaged persons belonging to Hindu religion, into religous conversion,” the probe agency added.
The ED searches also led to the seizure of a number of documents that show that the “proceeds of crime” (illicit funds) were majorly transferred to different people for purchasing a number of immovable properties worth crores of rupees and carrying out construction in these properties.
All the immovable assets acquired by Chhangur Baba are in the names of Naveen Rohra and Neetu Rohra to conceal his actual involvement in money laundering, the ED has said.