New Delhi: In its first enforcement action in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, the ED on Thursday accused RS at nine places in Port Blair and two places in Kolkata for more than RS 200 crore against officials of the former Congress MP and Andaman Nicobar State Cooperative (ANSC) in a money laundering case at two places in Kolkata.Former MP Kuldeep Rai Sharma, who was arrested by the island police on July 18, is a prominent accused in the alleged misuse of bank funds by issuing loans to Shell Entities and looting income. Sharma is the vice president of ANSC Bank.Police FIR has also accused ANSC Bank of large -scale irregularities in the grant of loan and overdraft facilities by ANSC Bank. At least eight persons have been arrested by the local police in the case including Sharma and other bank officials. On 29 July, a special court gave police Sharma’s custody and for questioning. To identify the assets purchased using “the income of crime”, the Ed may demand his custody and attach them.“The evidence collected so far indicates that the loan features were extended to various shell companies/firms, 15 of them were created by the suspects by the suspects, which were for the benefit of Kuldeep Rai Sharma, former MP of Andaman and Nicobar Islands,” a source said.The agency has found that more than Rs 200 crore loan was fraudulent by these institutions from ANSC Bank. Sources said, “A large part of these loans was withdrawn in cash and paid to the beneficiaries, including Kuldeep Rai Sharma.”
