Manipur: ED Alleges Rs 57 Cr Collected For Anti-India Activities
The two were earlier booked by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) and the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI): Reports
NEW DELHI: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Wednesday conducted searches at multiple locations in Imphal, Manipur, as part of a money laundering probe against individuals accused of collecting over ₹50 crore from the public through an alleged investment scheme and diverting the funds for activities amounting to waging war against the Government of India.
ED officials said at least five premises in the state capital were raided, linked to Yambem Biren, a self-styled chief minister of the Manipur State Council, and Narengbam Samarjit, a self-styled external affairs and defence minister of the same body. The two are described as key figures of the Salai Group of companies.
The case stems from a press conference held in London in 2019, where Biren and Samarjit allegedly declared the “independence of Manipur from the Union of India”. The ED said the act amounted to waging war against the State, sedition, and promoting disharmony, enmity and hatred among different groups.
The two were earlier booked by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) and the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).
According to the ED, the accused had initially formed the “Kadangband Swajaldhara Implementation Committee” in May 2003, which was renamed Smart Society in August 2008. They later established Salai Financial Service (SAFFINS), with its registered office at Sagolband Tera Loukrakpam Leikai in Imphal.
The agency alleged that the accused, along with entities of the Salai Group, fraudulently collected cash from the public by promising exorbitant returns. “Smart Society functioned illegally as a non-banking financial company by accepting cash deposits from the public under the guise of membership fees and disbursing interest only in cash,” the ED said.
Investigators claimed that ₹57.36 crore was collected from gullible investors under various schemes and deposited into the personal bank accounts of the accused, the Salai Group companies, Smart Society and their directors.
“These funds constitute proceeds of crime and were allegedly used for activities amounting to waging war against the Government of India, sedition, and promoting disharmony and hatred,” the ED said.
