New Delhi: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Friday alleged that political consultancy firm Indian Political Action Committee (I-PAC) spent nearly Rs 20 crore in Goa between 2021 and 2022, funds that the agency claims were proceeds of crime generated from illegal coal excavation in West Bengal. According to the ED, the money was routed through multiple hawala channels, including a Kolkata-based firm, R Kanti Lal, before being deployed in Goa.
R Kanti Lal is already under the ED’s scanner, having earlier figured in the agency’s investigation into the alleged Delhi excise policy scam involving the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP). I-PAC, meanwhile, is a political consultancy firm that has worked with several parties, including the Trinamool Congress (TMC).
Income Tax Raids and Rs 45 Crore Trail
Documents accessed by NDTV show that the Income Tax Department conducted raids at R Kanti Lal’s office in Goa in January 2022. An examination of the seized data allegedly revealed that around Rs 45 crore had been transferred to Goa through hawala channels. Investigators believe this money was used to finance election-related activities during the 2022 Goa Assembly polls.
The ED has alleged that a portion of this amount was diverted to support the AAP’s election campaign in Goa, accusing the party of being a major beneficiary of the proceeds of crime allegedly generated under the Delhi Excise Policy 2021–22.
Alleged Routing of Funds to I-PAC
In the I-PAC-linked case, the ED claims that funds were routed through R Kanti Lal and other hawala operators before reaching I-PAC and its director, Pratik Jain, ahead of the Goa elections. As part of the investigation, the agency carried out searches at I-PAC’s office as well as at R Kanti Lal’s premises in Kolkata’s Bada Bazar area.
Coal Scam Link and Common Names
The ED’s current probe originates from a CBI investigation into alleged illegal coal excavation and theft in leasehold areas of West Bengal. The CBI case names businessman Anup Majee and several officials of Eastern Coalfields Limited, a subsidiary of Coal India.
A key link between the coal scam probe and the excise policy case, according to the ED, is Sagar Patel. In its petition filed on Friday, the agency stated:
“Intelligence received indicates that around Rs 20 crore of proceeds of crime from Kolkata to Goa was transferred through the R Kanti Lal firm. The employee who handled the hawala transfers in Goa is Sagar Kumar Patel.”
Patel, who was employed by R Kanti Lal in Goa, is also accused of being involved in hawala fund transfers in the Delhi excise policy case, the ED alleged.
As the investigation widens, the agency is examining financial trails, alleged hawala networks, and the role of intermediaries to determine how the funds were generated, routed, and ultimately used during the politically sensitive period leading up to the 2022 Goa Assembly elections.