The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Tuesday recorded the statements of the complainants in the alleged money laundering scam in Goa under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), with the opposition pointing to possible political connections.
The ED has also registered an Enforcement Case Information Report (ECIR) to investigate the scam and seek detailed information from the Goa police, which has registered more than 33 cases, including more than 20 fires in North Goa and 13 in South Goa.
Since the scam came to light in October 2024, police investigations have revealed that people were duped into attracting government jobs from 2014-15.
Despite the arrest of more than 20 people and the registration of cases in all 12 of Goa’s six talukas—Bicholim, Bardez, Tiswadi, Ponda, Mormugao, and Canacona—the police have maintained that no political connection has been found in the scam so far.
The scam first came to light when a resident of Old Goa, Pooja Naik, was accused of duping many people across the country for huge sums of rupees on the pretext of getting them government jobs. This led to many cases being filed against certain people, some of whom have been identified as Deepashree Gawas, Priya Yadav, Sunita Pawaskar, Shruti Prabhugaonkar, and Uma Patil.
According to the police, the suspects deceived more than 300 people by promising them jobs in various government departments, including public works, water services, education, transport, police and health.
The victims, most of whom were looking for stable jobs for themselves or their families, are reported to have lost their money, while the accused used this money to live a luxurious life.
While the ED is focused on tracing the financial trail to find out the full extent of the scam, critics have raised concerns about the credibility and integrity of the investigation.
Opposition parties have called for a legal investigation, saying it is important to uncover possible political connections that could have allowed the scam to continue for years.
They say such a move is necessary to ensure justice for hundreds of misled Goans and to restore public confidence in the state’s governance.
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