Agartala, Aug 27: The Directorate of Enforcement (ED), Agartala Sub-Zonal Office, carried out extensive search operations on August 26 under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002, at multiple locations across Tripura, Delhi, Haryana and West Bengal. The raids were conducted in connection with the ongoing investigation against Utpal Kumar Chowdhury of Tripura, who is accused of orchestrating a massive fraud and laundering over ₹200 crore.
The ED initiated its probe on the basis of several FIRs registered by West Bengal Police against Chowdhury. Investigations revealed that he had floated a network of entities with names resembling government and PSU institutions such as Directorate of Higher Education Tripura, Bridge and Roof Company, and Directorate of Apparel Council of India.
Using these fake entities, Chowdhury duped individuals and institutions by projecting himself as a senior government official and promising lucrative contracts.
Chowdhury allegedly cheated several educational institutions by claiming to facilitate student admissions from Tripura and assured others of tenders under the Mid-Day Meal scheme. He also fraudulently took control of an NGO named Chaltakhali Swamiji Seva Sangha registered under the Foreign Contribution Regulation Act (FCRA), which he used to launder illicit funds.
Preliminary investigation shows that over ₹200 crore was laundered through the NGO’s accounts to various shell entities in Haryana, Delhi and Kolkata under the guise of a bogus rubber trading business. No records of actual sale, purchase or transportation of rubber were found; transactions were only shown on paper. Substantial sums were later siphoned off through cash withdrawals.
ED officials further uncovered Chowdhury’s close proximity with certain senior Tripura government officers, who allegedly introduced him as a high-ranking official to businessmen. Through such connections, he managed to extract large sums of money from unsuspecting traders, some of which were allegedly routed to these officers.
During the searches, the ED seized several incriminating documents and digital evidence, including forged IDs of the Ministry of Home Affairs, fake stamps of Tripura government departments and PSUs, and records of benami real estate investments in Tripura. Cash amounting to ₹7 lakh was recovered, and bank accounts with balances of about ₹60 lakh were frozen.
Chowdhury is presently lodged in Haryana Jail. The ED confirmed that further investigation into the money trail and involvement of other associates is underway.
