Surat: The enforcement directorate has attached assets worth Rs 2.70 crore of Sanket Media Pvt Ltd and its director PVS Sharma, a BJP leader, in the cheating and forgery case. Sarma, currently lodged in Lajpore jail in Surat, was an income officer and joined BJP after voluntary retirement.
The attached assets are in the form of immovable properties totalling Rs 2.46 crores comprising of seven shops measuring 1,460 sq ft at Savera Complex in the city, two flats measuring 485 sq ft each at Nova Complex Surat held in name of Sanket Media, one open plot, built-up house measuring 1975.73 sq m land and 77.73 sq m built-up area located at Palsana (Surat), one shop measuring 58 sq ft at Western Business Park, Surat, one plot measuring 215 sq m at Karunasagar all held in name of Sarma. Sarma. One plot measuring 243 sq m at Karunasagar is held in his wife P Annapurna Sarma’s name.
The movable assets totalling to Rs 24 lakhs are in the form of fixed deposits and balances in bank accounts held in the names of Sarma, Sanket Media and his son Sushant.
ED had initiated investigation under Prevention of Money Laundering Act on the basis of an FIR registered by Umra police station after investigation conducted by the income tax department against Sarma and his company.
“Sarma is involved in printing and publishing the newspaper Satyam Times in Gujarati and English language. Though the circulation of the newspapers were shown at 23,500 and 6000-6300 copies daily for the Gujarati and English editions, actual circulation was only 300-600 and 0-290 respectively,’‘ an official added.
“False figures of circulation were shown to attract more advertisement. In the name of Sanket Media, Sarma has indulged in conspiracy and cheated the government and private advertisement companies by performing forgery and by doing so they have received 2.70 crore towards advertisement,” said the official.
They made bogus purchases of raw materials that were shown by making series in the books of account from bogus companies and creating fake documents.
On November 26, 2020, ED had arrested Sharma under PMLA.
Sarma had created a sensation by alleging multi-crore money laundering scam post demonetisation and claimed it was executed at the behest of the senior I-T officers, builders, jewellers, diamond and textile industrialists.