New Delhi, Sep 26 (PTI) The Enforcement Directorate Thursday said it has moved a court in Shimla to get declared the Australian-based wife and son of the promoter of a Himachal Pradesh private university as fugitive economic offenders in a case of sale of “fake” degrees.
The federal agency has filed an application under the Fugitive Economic Offenders Act (FEOA) of 2018 before a special Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) court in Shimla.
The application has been made against Ashoni Kanwar, wife of Raj Kumar Rana, and Rana’s son Mandeep, it said in a statement.
Rana is the promoter of Solan-based Manav Bharti University.
The said application has been filed in the money laundering probe related to sale of “fake” degrees by the said university through which Rana and his associates “obtained” proceeds of crime to the tune of Rs 387 crore, the ED said.
It said Rana’s wife and son were residing in Australia but they “never joined the investigation” despite being summoned.
A charge sheet was filed by the ED in December, 2022 against Rana and 15 others and the special PMLA court took its cognisance in January, 2023 and issued summons to Ashoni Kanwar and Mandeep, the ED said.
The two “did not comply” with the court’s order and the court then issued open-ended non-bailable warrants against them in November last year.
“Therefore, an application has been filed before the special court in Shimla praying to initiate the proceedings against the said persons (Kanwar and Mandeep) under the provisions of section 10 of the FEOA and to declare both of them fugitive economic offenders under section 12 of this Act,” the ED said.
The agency can confiscate the assets of the two once the court declares them fugitive economic offenders.
The FEOA was enacted by the Narendra Modi government in 2018 to cripple those who are charged with high-value economic frauds and abscond from the country to evade the law.
The ED, as per official data, filed a total of 20 such applications before the designated special PMLA courts in the country following which 12 persons have been declared fugitive economic offenders till now, which include diamond trader Nirav Modi and liquor baron Vijay Mallya. PTI NES KVK KVK
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