ED raids AAP MP Sanjeev Arora in ‘land fraud’ case, he says will cooperate

Premises linked to real estate businessman Hemant Sood from Ludhiana, businessman Chandra Shekhar Agrawal in Jalandhar, and Pardeep Aggarwal, owner of a company called Royal City, are also among the locations being searched.

Sources in the ED said that searches were being carried out in connection with a piece of land that was allotted to Arora by Punjab government a few year ago for an industrial project, but was used for a residential project.

“The land was allotted to Ritesh Properties and Industries Limited (RPIL), one of the companies owned by Arora, for industrial purpose. However it was used for residential project using fraudulent methods and in a deceitful manner,” said the source.

Arora, meanwhile, said he doesn’t exactly know the reason that warranted the searches. “I am a law abiding citizen, am not sure about the reason for search operation, will cooperate fully with agencies and make sure all their queries are answered,” he said in a post on X.

I am a law abiding citizen, am not sure about the reason for search operation, will cooperate fully with agencies and make sure all their queries are answered.

— Sanjeev Arora (@MP_SanjeevArora) October 7, 2024

Arora is the chairman-cum-managing director of RPIL, a company with business interests in real estate, women’s clothing and fashion industry. The company has developed Hampton Court Business Park on Chandigarh Road in Ludhiana. The venture also includes Hampton Homes, a housing project offering luxury residential apartments. He also runs the Krishna Pran Breast Cancer Charitable Trust in Ludhiana. The AAP nominated him to the Rajya Sabha in 2022.

In Delhi, AAP national convenor Arvind Kejriwal termed the raid as a “politically motivated attack by the Modi government”.

“Today, they are conducting an ED raid on Sanjeev Arora. Before this, they arrested me, Sanjay Singh, Manish Sisodia, Satyendar Jain, Vijay Nair, and Bibhav. This is not an investigation against corruption. It is clearly an orchestrated attempt by the prime minister to crush one party using every resource, agency, and power at his disposal,” Kejriwal told reporters.

AAP Rajya Sabha MP Sanjeev Arora. (ANI)

He reiterated AAP’s stance on integrity, saying the party remains committed to honesty and accountability. “We have done nothing wrong, and we remain fearless. Despite these attacks, we stand unshaken,” he added.

At another press conference, senior AAP leader and former Delhi deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia said, “Today, in a bid to destroy AAP, Arvind Kejriwal, and our leaders, the prime minister’s pet agency, ED, has raided the home of Sanjeev Arora”.

He further accused Modi of using investigative agencies as political tools, citing their inability to defeat AAP and Kejriwal in the elections. “Narendra Modi is resorting to such actions because he is unable to defeat us in elections,” Sisodia said.

Senior AAP leader and Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh accused the prime minister of being obsessed with destroying AAP and focussing on vendettas rather than national issues like job creation and healthcare. “The PM has fallen prey to a serious disease called ‘hate ki bimaari’ (disease of hatred). There is no cure for it. Every morning the prime minister’s job is to finish AAP, finish its leaders, finish Arvind Kejriwal and finish his politics,” Singh said.