Stench of hawala in Gujarat AAP cash theft

AHMEDABAD: Investigations into the theft of Rs 20 lakh from the car of an AAP candidate in Gujarat a couple of weeks ago have led the police and income tax officials to the hawala transfer of at least Rs 10 crore by the party to the poll-bound state. The AAP candidate tied himself up in knots, first saying it was his money but then claiming it was sent by his party for elections.

The police established the Punjab-Delhi-Ahmedabad money trail, with the cash transfer made by a person named R Jain. They said Jain transferred it to an Ahmedabad angadia (hawala operator) named Chhagan Jyanti, who in turn distributed it to angadias across Gujarat.

The police found handwritten notes in code from some of the angadias. The I-T department is also seized on the matter since it involves black money. On October 12, Rs 20 lakh was stolen from the car of AAP’s Bardoli candidate Rajendra Solanki. His complaint said it belonged to him, but later he disowned it. He also built distance from the driver of his car that was broken into, Santosh Parashar. 

“This money is not mine, it was sent from Delhi by AAP for election expenses. Parashar is not my driver. He is working for AAP. He was sent from Delhi,” Solanki said, making it sound fishier. “I was introduced to him and was told that he would be looking after the expenses of AAP,” he added. Parashar was to hand over the cash to another driver when it was stolen. 

This is where the police started investigating the source of the money. A senior income tax officer said local candidates’ drivers and party workers pick up cash from angadias and deliver them to candidates and party office bearers.AAP Gujarat spokesperson Yogesh Jadwani said, “Angdiyas also operate in Delhi. It is not right to target only AAP.”

Angadia network
“We found cash coming to Gujarat through hawala, and delivered by a party to various places through angadias,” an I-T officer said