NHAI toll fraud probe: ED conducts raids in Jammu

Jammu Tawi, Sep 02 : The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Wednesday carried out searches at a premises in Jammu’s Gandhi Nagar as part of a nationwide money laundering investigation into an alleged fraud involving toll collection at National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) toll plazas.

An official said in Jammu searches were conducted at the residence of Rakesh Choudhary. “These were a part of simultaneous raids at around 14 locations across Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Delhi-NCR and Jammu and Kashmir,” he added.

“The searches stem from two police FIRs alleging that unauthorised software applications were used to generate toll receipts, enabling the diversion of toll collections outside the official accounting system,” the official said.

Another official said that forensic analysis and NHAI records have indicated the alleged use of such software, pointing to a systematic fraud in toll revenue collection.

During the searches, the ED seized digital devices and documentary records to identify the alleged beneficiaries and trace the proceeds of crime.