ED raids linked to FEMA, but we have only sought permission to invest abroad: Satish Jarikiholi

Even as officers of the Enforcement Directorate (ED) concluded searches at premises linked to Public Works Minister Satish Jarkiholi and those of his relatives and associates in Belagavi, he confirmed that they were related to allegations of violations of the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA).

Speaking to presspersons in Bengaluru on Thursday, he said, “ED officers gave us a notice yesterday, and it was about alleged violations of FEMA provisions, not the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA). I think their focus was on our proposed investments abroad. While they kept claiming that we had already invested, I kept telling them that we have not yet invested. I told them we had definite investment plans and had applied for permissions from various agencies, including the RBI. As we are yet to receive them, our overseas investments have not yet been made,” he said.

He further said that ED officers had seized some documents from various places and cash of around ₹2 crore. “We have said it belongs to us and that we will claim it through legal means by submitting all the necessary documents,” the Minister said.

ED personnel conducted searches at the residences of Mr. Satish Jarkiholi, his children Priyanka and Rahul, and his brother-in-law Y. Manjunath. Mr. Manjunath, a Joint Commissioner in the Excise Department, is married to Mahadevi, the sister of Mr. Satish Jarkiholi. Searches were also conducted at the residences of Malagouda Patil, personal assistant to the Minister, and Preeti Kakatkar, personal assistant to Mr. Manjunath.

Addressing the press, Mr. Satish Jarkiholi also questioned why leaders of the Congress and regional Opposition parties were the lone targets of Central agencies.

He, however, said that he “may have made some small mistake”, but that central agencies were “letting off big fish and coming after small fish”. He claimed that, across the country, only Opposition leaders were being targeted.

“No one can say they are 100% correct in all business dealings. But they seem to be targeting only Congress leaders and Opposition parties, including regional parties,” he said. “KPCC president B.K. Hariprasad told me just now that as many as eight Congress leaders from the State may be targeted.”

Incidentally, ED officers did not visit the residences or offices of the Minister’s brothers, Ramesh Jarkiholi and Balachandra Jarkiholi, both BJP MLAs. There were also no reports of searches at the residences of Independent MLC Lakhan Jarkiholi or businessman Bhimshi Jarkiholi, both younger brothers of the Minister.

Mr. Satish Jarkiholi, however, made it clear that he had not faced any harassment from ED officers. “They cooperated with us and we cooperated with them,” he said, adding that the officials had conducted themselves in a non-partisan manner. “I trust the legal process and we will face it,” he said. “I told them whatever I knew and asked them to issue notices if they required additional information.”

On the status of the case, Mr. Satish Jarkiholi said: “The preliminary investigation has begun and we do not know when it will end. It may continue till the next elections. We do not know.”