Punjab IAS officer Kanwalpreet Brar appears before ED in Sunteck City money laundering case
Senior Punjab IAS officer Kanwalpreet Brar appeared before the ED in Jalandhar for questioning in a money laundering probe linked to Sunteck City CLU approvals in Mohali
PTC Web Desk: Senior Punjab cadre IAS officer Kanwalpreet Brar appeared before the Enforcement Directorate (ED) at its Jalandhar office on Tuesday in connection with a money laundering investigation linked to alleged irregularities in revised Change of Land Use (CLU) approvals for the Sunteck City project in Mohali.
Kanwalpreet Brar, a 2007-batch IAS officer, is currently serving as Secretary in Punjab's Health and Family Welfare Department. The questioning, however, relates to her tenure as Director of Town and Country Planning in 2024. She reached the ED office in the morning along with all documents sought by the investigating agency.
According to the case details, ED officials questioned her about the process through which CLU applications were processed and approved, particularly allegations that forged consent letters were used to obtain the necessary permissions.
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He had alleged that promoters of Sunteck City had prepared forged consent letters showing approval from him and 14 other farmers for their land. Following an investigation by then Mohali SP Harmandeep Hans, an FIR was registered at the Mullanpur police station in November 2022. The case subsequently became the basis for the ED's money laundering investigation.
As part of the probe, the ED conducted searches at 12 locations across Mohali and Chandigarh. The premises of Sunteck City promoter Ajay Sehgal and businessman Nitin Goyal were among those searched. Reports at the time said that during one of the searches, Rs 21 lakh in cash was allegedly thrown down from the ninth floor.
Ajay Sehgal was subsequently arrested by the ED following questioning.
The latest development indicates that the agency has widened the scope of its investigation beyond the project promoters and private individuals.
The ED is now examining the functioning of Greater Mohali Area Development Authority (GMADA) and the Housing Department in relation to the approvals and other aspects of the case.