Luchnow, Feb 24 (IANS) The Enforcement Directorate’s Lucknow Zonal Office has filed a chargesheet under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002, against former MLA Arif Anwar Hashmi (ex-MLA from Utraula, Balrampur, Uttar Pradesh) and his wife Rozi Salma.
The complaint was submitted on February 23 before the Special Judge, CBI/ED, Lucknow.
The ED initiated its probe based on multiple FIRs registered by Uttar Pradesh Police against Hashmi and his associates for offences related to illegal encroachment, forgery, cheating, and criminal conspiracy.
Following thorough investigation, UP Police filed several chargesheets establishing these scheduled offences, an ED press statement said.
Investigations revealed large unaccounted cash deposits in bank accounts held by Hashmi and his wife, which were grossly inconsistent with their reported sources of income.
The couple failed to justify the origin of these funds, including those used to acquire immovable properties, it said.
The accused allegedly generated proceeds of crime amounting to Rs 8.24 crore through commission of the scheduled offences.
As part of the action, the ED had earlier issued a Provisional Attachment Order on September 24, 2024, attaching 21 immovable properties, comprising agricultural land, residential plots, and flats, valued at Rs 8.24 crore. These assets belong to Arif Anwar Hashmi and Rozi Salma and are located in the districts of Balrampur, Lucknow, and Gonda in Uttar Pradesh.
The attachment was confirmed by the Adjudicating Authority under PMLA on March 3, 2025.
The prosecution complaint seeks to proceed against the accused for money laundering under relevant provisions of the PMLA, linking the attached properties directly to the proceeds of crime derived from the predicate offences investigated by UP Police.
Further investigation in the case remains ongoing, with the ED continuing to examine related financial trails and associates.
Arif Anwar Hashmi, a former two-time Samajwadi Party legislator from the Utraula assembly seat in Balrampur district, has faced multiple legal challenges in recent years, including prior attachments and cases stemming from land-related allegations and other criminal complaints.
The development marks a significant escalation in the multi-agency scrutiny of the former legislator’s financial dealings, highlighting the ED’s focus on tracing and confiscating assets generated through alleged criminal activities.
–IANS
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