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Allegations against Rakesh Asthana false, powerful people working against him: Brother

OpIndia Staff
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Allegations against Rakesh Asthana false, powerful people working against him: Brother

Ousted CBI chief Rakesh Asthana’s brother MK Asthana has claimed that “fake news, fake propaganda and false information” were spread against his brother by people with vested interests.

According to reports, MK Asthana, in an open letter, has stated that some people with power and influence even tried to interfere in the covert operation that saw AgustaWestland middleman Christian Michel being brought to India.


MK Asthana in his letter has reportedly written, “The CBI team led by Rakesh Asthana was investigating the AgustaWestland case, successfully extradited the middleman Michel in absolute perfect coordination with IB, RAW, NSA and ministry of external affairs, despite last-minute efforts by one section of CBI to scuttle the whole operation by illegally tapping phone calls of officers, government functionaries linked to this extradition process.”

MK Asthana has claimed that one section of CBI, under orders from former chief Alok Verma was actively trying to scuttle the operation under Rakesh Asthana’s leadership.

In the open letter written on Wednesday, MK Asthana had claimed that some very influential people, lawyers, lawmakers and powerful media persons have been spreading misinformation against his brother.

MK Asthana has reportedly stated that Rakesh Asthana’s findings of the involvement of the former CBI director Alok Verma in corruption cases have also been upheld by the CVC, the Supreme Court and the 3-member selection committee.

He has also added that the allegations against Rakesh Asthana are false and concocted, orchestrated by Alok Verma to malign his brother.

It was reported earlier that the CVC report against Alok Verma mentions that he had “clear prejudice and bias” against Rakesh Asthana. It also mentioned that Alok Verma had forged a ‘secret note’ sent by the CBI to the selection committee to stall Asthana’s appointment as CBI director in 2017.

Construction work of Ram Mandir to begin on February 21, ready to take bullets if required, says Swami Swaroopanand

OpIndia Staff
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Construction work of Ram Mandir to begin on February 21, ready to take bullets if required, says Swami Swaroopanand

Amidst heightened tensions regarding the contentious Ram Mandir issue, Shankaracharya of Dwarka Peeth, Swami Swaroopanand today declared that the construction of the temple will begin from February 21. He assured that around 500 saints/sadhus would reach Ayodhya with the foundation laying stones and make sure that it’s laid on that day.

Speaking after the Param Dharam Sansad at Prayagraj on the sidelines of the ongoing Kumbh, Swami Swaroopanand said that the sadhus would leave from Prayagrag and proceed to Ayodhya after ‘Basant Panchami’ and that they are ready to take bullets if stopped from going ahead with the construction of the Ram temple in Ayodhya.

Swami Swaroopanand’s declaration came in soon after the BJP government had filed a petition with the Supreme Court to allow it to return the ‘non-disputed’ surplus land acquired around the disputed structure in Ayodhya to Ram Janmabhoomi Nyas and other original owners.

Uttar Pradesh Cheif Minister Yogi Adityanath had reiterated last week that people’s patience on the issue of the construction of Ram temple was ‘fast running out’.

Yogi Adityanath, while talking on IndiaTV’s show, Aap Ki Adalat had said that if the Supreme Court was unable to give an early verdict on the dispute, it should ‘hand it over to us’ and it will be resolved within 24 hours.

“I will still appeal to the court to dispose of the dispute soon. On September 30, 2010, the Allahabad High Court division bench gave its verdict, not on the issue of division of land but upheld the view that the Babri structure was built by demolishing a Hindu temple or memorial. The Archaeological Survey of India, on the High Court’s orders, carried out excavations and in its report admitted that the Babri structure was built by demolishing a Hindu temple or a memorial,” he said.

“By adding the title dispute unnecessarily, the Ayodhya dispute is being prolonged. We appeal to the Supreme Court to give us justice at the earliest, to the satisfaction of millions of people, so that it can become a symbol of people’s faith. But if there is an unnecessary delay, institutions may lose people’s trust,” Yogi Adityanath added.

Yesterday, union Law minister Ravi Shankar Prasad had also expressed displeasure over the delay in the hearing of the case in the Supreme Court.

Ex-SIMI man accused of sedition held from Varanasi airport due to a Lookout Circular against him

OpIndia Staff
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Ex-SIMI man accused of sedition held from Varanasi airport due to a Lookout Circular against him

A former member of the banned organisation Students Islamic Movement of India (SIMI), against whom a Lookout Circular had been issued, was arrested while trying to leave the country.

A senior police officer, known to the case, said that the man named Mohammad Faiz, a resident of Khuda Daadpur village of Azamgarh, had reached the Varanasi airport to board a Sharjah-bound flight. While going through the security check, the immigration officer, checking his passport found out that he was a former member of SIMI and had been barred from leaving the country.

A LOC had been issued against him in 2001.

Immigration in-charge Kundan said, “Faiz was taken into custody by the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) and handed over to the Azamgarh police.”

Faiz, who is accused of being a sleeper cell of a terror module in 2001 was sent to jail on Monday after a case was registered against him by Azamgarh police.

Inspector at Nizamabad police station, Yogendra Bahadur Singh said, “A case has been registered under sections 420 (cheating), 465 (forgery), 467 (forgery of valuable security), 468 (forgery for purpose of cheating) and 471 (using a forged document as genuine) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and section 8 of the Notaries Act against Faiz for forgery and hiding facts about a sedition case registered against him in 2001.”

A case was registered against Faiz in 2001, under section 153 (intent to cause riot), 153A (promoting enmity), 153 B (imputations, assertions, prejudicial to national integration) and 505 (statement conducing to public mischief) of the IPC against him.

DIG Azamgarh (range), Vijay Bhushan, confirmed that the preliminary investigation revealed that Faiz went to Saudi Arabia and worked as a tailor between 2015 and 2016. He raised his concerns regarding the laxity on the part of the police officers saying that “A probe has been ordered to find out as to how he managed to go to Saudi Arabia in 2015-16 despite a ban on his visits outside the country,” Bhushan said, adding that he would find as to why his passport was not seized despite a LOC against him.

Azamgarh SP Babloo Kumar has been given the responsibility of carrying out a probe into the role of local cops after it came to light that Faiz ducked the lookout notice to visit Saudi Arabia in 2015-16 and work as a tailor. “The superintendent of police will submit a report within a fortnight and cops would be taken to task for failing to impound Faiz’s passport,” said DIG Azamgarh Vijay Bhushan.

AgustaWestland scam accused Rajiv Saxena, UPA era Lobbyist Deepak Talwar being extradited to India

OpIndia Staff
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AgustaWestland scam accused Rajiv Saxena, UPA era Lobbyist Deepak Talwar being extradited to India

In an important development in the investigations into UPA era scams, two high-profile persons linked to the scams are being extradited to India from Dubai tonight. According to reports, Rajiv Saxena and Deepak Talwar are being brought to India by investigating agencies.

Lawyers of Rajiv Saxena, who is an accused in the VVIP chopper scam, has informed that he was picked up by UAE government security agencies today morning in Dubai, and later he was extradited to India in the evening.


According to advocates Geeta Luthra and Prateek Yadav, the extradition was done illegally as no extradition proceedings were followed in UAE, and Saxena was not allowed to meet his family or lawyers. He was boarded onto a private jet from a private terminal at Dubai International airport, they said.

The lawyers have also said that when they talked to UAE authorities to know what happened, the security agencies informed them that he is on a flight and can’t be stopped, and they were instructed to ask the Indian government about further details.


According to media reports, another accused in the scam, Deepak Talwar is also being extradited to India tonight, who is a lobbyist and was involved in several aviation deals during the UPA government.


Talwar also lives in Dubai, and earlier was barred from leaving UAE by a court in another case, which was seen as a setback in the efforts of India to get him extradited.


Both the fugitives are being brought in the same plane of the government of India. ED will take their custody after they arrive in India. According to a report by Times Now, the flight will land at 2:30 AM tonight.

Rajiv Saxena is accused in a money laundering case connected with the AgustaWestland deal. He had filed an anticipatory bail plea in a Delhi court last month, which the ED had opposed. The Enforcement Directorate (ED) had named him in a supplementary charge sheet filed in the VVIP Chopper scam in September 2017. Saxena and his wife Shivani Saxena are directors in two Dubai based companies, while he is a director in another Mauritius based company, and it is alleged that all those companies received proceeds of the kickbacks paid in the AgustaWestland deal.

On December 4, 2018, middleman in the VVIP chopper deal Christian Michel was extradited to India from Dubai. He has already made several sensational revelations in front of investigating agencies. Extradition of Rajiv Saxena and to India will further boost the case where senior Congress leaders and the Gandhi family are directly named as beneficiaries.

 

Note:This story has been updated with additional information

OpIndia Evening Dispatch: Wednesday, 30th January 2019

OpIndia Staff
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OpIndia Evening Dispatch: Wednesday, 30th January 2019

In the hustle and bustle of the day, it is only natural to miss some of the biggest developments that impact the nation. The OpIndia Evening Dispatch will catch you up on the day’s event even if you have been busy thus far.

Here is what made it to news today:

1. ‘Stooping so low as to make a false statement raises questions about purpose of your visit’, Manohar Parrikar to Rahul Gandhi in a scathing letter

Reacting to comments made by Rahul Gandhi on his meeting with Goa chief minister Manohar Parrikar, the former defence minister has sent a strongly worded letter to the Congress president. Yesterday Rahul Gandhi had met Parikar in Goa. Talking about the meeting later at a rally, Rahul Gandhi had claimed that Parrikar had told him that Parrikar had “nothing to do with the new Rafale deal orchestrated by Mr Narendra Modi to benefit Anil Ambani”.

Reacting to that statement, Manohar Parrikar says in the letter that he feels let down that Rahul Gandhi has used the visit for his ‘petty political gains’. He says that “in the 05 minutes you spent with me, neither did you mention anything about Rafale, nor did we discuss anything about/related to it”.

Also Read: Before the letter by Parrikar, Goa Leader of Opposition Chandrakant Kavlekar had said that the Rafale deal were not even discussed during the Rahul Gandhi’s meeting with Manohar Parrikar. But later Rahul Gandhi had claimed that it was discussed.

Additional reading: Leave Manohar Parrikar alone, Rahul Gandhi.

2. Telangana: Congress candidate loses Panchayat elections, husband demands bribe money back from voters

In a bizarre incident in Telangana, the husband of a Congress candidate who lost in the recent Panchayat elections went back to voters demanding the return of money they had received as bribes before the election, reported Times Now.

The incident took place in Jajireddy Gudem village in Suryapet district of Telangana. On January 25, polls were held to elect the sarpanch and Prabhakar’s wife, Uppu Hymavathi had also contested for the post, while ending up with just 24 of the 269 votes in the village.

3. Child right body writes to Arvind Kejriwal, says poll campaigns in schools a bad influence on children

Reminding the AAP government that poll campaigning in schools is ‘bad influence’ on children, the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) wrote a letter to Arvind Kejriwal led Delhi government a day after the Delhi Chief Minister and his deputy Manish Sisodia campaigned for Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) at a school event for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections.

The letter from the Child right body came following a complaint received from the president of Delhi Parents Association, Aparajita Gautam, about the ill effects of such unannounced “election campaigns”, hampering children’s tutelage.

4. Congress leader O M George booked under POCSO for sexually assaulting a minor Adivasi girl for over 2 years

In a shocking incident that has come to light, a senior Congress leader from Kerala, O MSFI leader Nazeem who assaulted Kerala traffic cop being shielded by Communist leaders? George has been booked for alleged sexual assault of a minor 17-year-old Adivasi girl for a period of almost 2 years. Reportedly, O M George, the Congress leader is now absconding.

5. CJI Ranjan Gogoi warns Karti Chidambaram to not play around with the law, says will come down heavily on him if he does not cooperate

Coming down heavily on Karti Chidambaram, who is accused in money laundering case, Chief Justice of India Ranjan Gogoi gave a stern warning to former Union Minister P. Chidambaram’s son to not “play around with the law”. He further said that if Karti does not cooperate, the Supreme Court will come down heavily on him.

The Supreme Court also directed Karti Chidambaram to appear before the Enforcement Directorate for interrogation with respect to his role in the Aircel-Maxis deal and INX Media case in March.

6. Uttar Pradesh: Noida police arrests a police inspector and three journalists in connection with extortion case

In a trap laid by the Superintendent of police (SSP) Noida team, a Station house officer (SHO) of sector 20 police station, Manoj Pant was arrested along with three Noida based journalists Sushil Pandit, Raman Thakur and Udit Goyal for extorting Rs 8 Lakh from a Call Center in that area.

According to the charges, the accused were caught while extorting money from a call centre owner for removing his name from an FIR, which was registered against him in November last year.

7. ‘Without my integrity, my profession would be over’: Vivek Doval records statement in defamation case against Caravan and Jairam Ramesh

Vivek Doval, son of National Security Advisor (NSA) Ajit Doval appeared before the court today to record his statement in connection with a criminal defamation case Vivek Doval had filed against the controversial left-wing magazine The Caravan and Congress Leader Jairam Ramesh, reported Bar and Bench.

Vivek Doval appearing before the court of Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Samar Vishal on Tuesday said that the allegations put forward by the magazine Caravan in its article titled ‘The D-Company’ were completely baseless and false.

8. Government rubbishes media speculations about full budget, clarifies it will be presenting Interim Budget

Putting the speculations about the kind of budget the union government will be presenting, today the Finance Ministry clarified that it will be ‘Interim Budget 2019-2020’. The ministry has issued a one-line clarification saying, “This Budget will be called Interim Budget 2019-20 and therefore, don’t have any confusion on this issue.”

For the last several weeks, there was intense speculation in media that the Modi government will be presenting a full budget instead of an interim budget.

9. Tickets for sale: AIADMK tells party leaders to pay Rs. 25,000 as ‘application fees’ if they want to contest 2019 Lok Sabha elections

Following Punjab Congress’ footsteps of charging the ticket aspirants for the Lok Sabha elections, a fee to get the party’s nomination, the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) has told their party leaders that whoever are “willing” to contest parliamentary polls, have to pay Rs 25,000 when they submit their application forms for the same.

According to news agency ANI, the AIADMK has announced that party workers who are willing to contest in Lok Sabha elections can apply from February 4 to February 10 after paying Rs 25,000. All 40 constituencies (39 Tamil Nadu and 1 Puducherry) have been listed for sending applications.

‘Congress is using its lawyers to delay the Ram Mandir case’: Amit Shah in Kanpur

OpIndia Staff
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‘Congress is using its lawyers to delay the Ram Mandir case’: Amit Shah in Kanpur

Bharatiya Janata Party President Amit Shah today addressed the booth-level presidents of Kanpur-Bundelkhand and Avadh region at Kanpur, Uttar Pradesh in Booth Adbyaksh Sammelan. Strengthening its booths is a significant part of the BJP’s strategy for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections.

In his invigorating address to the booth-level presidents, Shah reminded how they had led the party to victory in the 2014 elections. He attacked the opposition grand alliance and termed it an alliance of crime and corruption. He mocked the opposition leaders who are racing against each other for the post of PM. Hitting out the opposition alliance for not being able to reach a consensus regarding their Prime Ministerial candidate, Shah said that if gathbandhan government comes to power Behenji ( BSP Supremo Mayawati) will be the Prime Minister Monday, Akhilesh ji on Tuesday, Mamata ji on Wednesday, Sharad Pawar ji on Thursday, Deve Gowda ji on Friday, Stalin on Saturday and the whole country will go on holiday on Sunday. The BJP President said that opposition leaders have come together against nationalism.

Shah said that the BJP stands for the four Bs of Badhta Bharat, Banta Bharat while for the opposition the four Bs imply Bua, Bhateeja, Bhai and Behen.

Shah praised Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath for restoring law and order in the State by dealing with the criminals with a tough hand. He said that the Yogi government in UP has instilled fear in the hearts of the criminals. They are now begging to be arrested and women can now attend weddings and other functions at night without worrying about their jewellery being stolen.

While attacking the opposition parties for promoting dynasties he said that even a booth worker in BJP can become the Prime Minister. Speaking on the issue of Ram Mandir, Shah blamed the Congress and said that Congress’ lawyers are using different tactics to delay the hearing in the Ram Mandir case. He said that the BJP government has decided to return the land belonging to Ram Janmabhoomi Nyas which was acquired by the Congress government.

Speaking on the issue of NRC, Shah said that the BJP is committed to driving the illegal immigrants out of the country. He urged the opposition leader to make their stand clear on the issue of illegal immigrants.

Mathura Railway station gets swanky new look

OpIndia Staff
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Mathura Railway station gets swanky new look

As a part of the redevelopment initiative, the Railway ministry under Union Minister Piyush Goyal has successfully upgraded the Mathura railway station, offering world-class facilities to the railway passengers. Apart from modern amenities, the facelift of the railway station provides an upgraded look and swanky lounges for the travelling passengers.

Mathura Railway Station (Source: Financial Times)

The revamped station is provided with new entry and exit gates. The retiring room for the first class railway passengers has been completely reworked, and new comfortable benches are provided. The VIP room of the railway station, as well as the booking hall, have been given a major overhaul. The entrance gate of the station has been given a refreshing look while the circulating area of the station has been renovated.

Mathura railway Station (Source: Financial Times)
Mathura Railway Station (Source: Financial Times)

The Union Railway Minister has directed a major redevelopment work of transforming stations into world-class transit hubs. Two major stations identified are Gandhinagar and Habibganj and their beautification is happening at a breakneck pace. The Railways will be developing these two stations at par with the plush Airports in the country.

Piyush Goyal has asked Indian railways officials to make sure that the redevelopment work of 68 stations should be completed by end of February 2019. Goyal has urged officials to post images of the status of projects on an integrated dashboard to monitor the progress. Some of the other stations that have already undergone major upgrade include Jaipur Junction, Tirupati railway station, Haridwar railway station, and New Delhi railway station.

Tickets for sale: AIADMK tells party leaders to pay Rs. 25,000 as ‘application fees’ if they want to contest 2019 Lok Sabha elections

OpIndia Staff
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Tickets for sale: AIADMK tells party leaders to pay Rs. 25,000 as ‘application fees’ if they want to contest 2019 Lok Sabha elections

Following Punjab Congress’ footsteps of charging the ticket aspirants for the Lok Sabha elections, a fee to get the party’s nomination, the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) has told their party leaders that whoever are “willing” to contest parliamentary polls, have to pay Rs 25,000 when they submit their application forms for the same.

According to news agency ANI, the AIADMK has announced that party workers who are willing to contest in Lok Sabha elections can apply from February 4 to February 10 after paying Rs 25,000. All 40 constituencies (39 Tamil Nadu and 1 Puducherry) have been listed for sending applications.

However, this is not the first time, AIADMK has charged an election ticket fee from aspirants, in 2014 Lok Sabha polls, the party had charged a similar fee from the party ticket aspirants.

The Punjab Congress had also earlier issued similar notification asking the party members applying for tickets for 2019 Lok Sabha polls to pay Rs 25,000 as application fee. However, the reserved category seats would cost a sum of Rs 20,000. Punjab has 13 Lok Sabha seats including four reserved for Scheduled Caste (SC) candidates.

The instruction to charge an application fee came from All India Congress Committee (AICC) general secretary in-charge of Punjab and Chandigarh Asha Kumari. She has adopted this step to help the so-called cash-starved party generate funds ahead of the general elections.

It is pertinent to note here that the so-called cash-starved Punjab government, disregarding its present financial burdens and the debt strain Punjab is going through, had in October 2018, approved the purchase of a new fleet of over 400 luxury vehicles for the chief minister, his staff, cabinet ministers and bureaucrats in the state government worth Rs 80 crore.

However, this is not the first time for the Congress to charge for its election tickets. It has demanded a similar amount for the four Lok Sabha seats in Himachal Pradesh also.’

Meanwhile, AIADMK had won 37 of the 39 seats in the 2014 Lok Sabha polls. This time, however, the party will be contesting national polls under new leadership for the first time in years after the death of Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa, who passed away in December 2016.

PM Modi lays foundation stone for more than a dozen projects in Surat, furnishes his government’s report card

OpIndia Staff
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PM Modi lays foundation stone for more than a dozen projects in Surat, furnishes his government’s report card

PM Narendra Modi was in Surat today for laying the foundation stone for several developmental projects under the Smart-City initiative. He also laid the foundation stone for the extension of the terminal building at the Surat Airport. Hailing Surat, Modi said it was the first centre in the country from where Satyagraha was initiated by Mahatma Gandhi.


Referring to the global economic research report, PM Modi congratulated the people of Surat for topping the list of fastest developing cities in the world in the coming decade. He claimed the expansion of Surat Airport will boost the growth of the city and its passenger handling capacity, which is currently 4 lakh passengers per year, will be increased to 26 lakh passengers. He also said that 3 locations- Sabarmati riverfront, Shatrunjay Dam and Statue of Unity have been identified and are surveyed for building water airports at these places. Speaking about the success of UDAAN scheme 1 and 2, PM Modi said his government is working on launching UDAAN scheme 3 to connect different cities in Gujarat with each other as well as with the budding towns of the country.

Using the occasion to list down the developmental work carried out by his government in the last 4.5 years, PM Modi asserted that before BJP came to power in 2014, there were only 80 passport offices across the country and the people in town and smaller cities had to visit metro cities to apply for their passports. In 4.5 years of BJP’s governance, the number of passport offices has increased to more than 400. The government has been committed to connecting the entire country with air connectivity and has been operating at a fast pace in the past 4 years and 17 airports which were underutilised have been upgraded or are under upgradation.

Modi also said that 1 crore 30 lakh houses have been built under Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana and permission for around 70 lakh more houses has been sanctioned by the government. This is a significant achievement since the previous governments have had built only 25 lakh houses till 2014. Speaking about the reduced electricity bill, Modi informed that his government had distributed about 32 crore LED bulbs which effected a savings of Rs 16,500 crores in the electricity bill.

The RERA law legislated by the Modi government ensures that the hard-earned money of the poor and middle-class families do not remain stuck in infrastructure projects. Under RERA Law, 30-35 thousand builders have registered and are building homes for millions adhering to the rules, the prime minister said.

Talking about the MUDRA initiative, PM Modi said that unguaranteed loans worth Rs 7 lakh crore have been given by the government to those who were seeking funds to start their business. He also stated that about 4 crores 25 lakh people took the loan for the first time and thus the country has added 4 crores 25 lakh first generation entrepreneurs in the last 4.5 years.

Pakistani singer Rahat Fateh Ali Khan gets ED notice in currency smuggling case

OpIndia Staff
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Pakistani singer Rahat Fateh Ali Khan gets ED notice in currency smuggling case

Pakistani singer Rahat Fateh Ali Khan has been issued a show-cause notice by ED for alleged violation of foreign currency rules on Wednesday. The notice was issued to him in connection with the seizure of undisclosed US Dollars on him at the Delhi airport in 2011. An official of the ED said, “A show-cause notice has been issued to Khan for the alleged violation of foreign currency rules and for embezzling two million rupees.”

The ED officials also claimed that the popular Sufi singer has been asked to respond to the notice in 45 days. The officials of Directorate of Revenue Intelligence had arrested Khan and his manager Maruf Ali Khan from the Indira Gandhi International Airport in 2011, and the undisclosed amount of USD 1.24 lakh and some other belongings were seized from them. After this, the investigating agency started inquiries under the FEMA in 2014 against Rahat Fateh Ali Khan and his associates.

The Central Agency ED had investigated cases of foreign exchange violations under FEMA, and it has already interrogated the singer about the matter. The singer has defended himself, claiming he hadn’t done anything illegal. He was carrying such a huge amount on him because he was travelling with a huge group, he had said. Born in Sufi Kawwal family, Rahat Ali Khan is a singer of Pakistani origin and has occupied stage since the age of 7. Rahat is the nephew of a well-known Sufi-singer Ustad Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan. Rahat Fateh Ali Khan debuted as a playback singer in Bollywood with the movie ‘Paap’ in 2003. He has also been a judge on reality shows in India.

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) is currently investigating the case. Khan will be penalised with 300% penalty if the ED remains dissatisfied with his response. If he refuses to pay the penalty, a lookout notice is expected to be issued against the singer and he would thereby be prevented from performing anywhere in India.

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