The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Wednesday conducted searches at multiple premises linked to Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) Rajya Sabha MP Ashok Kumar Mittal in Punjab as part of a probe under the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA), officials said.
The action comes days after Mittal was appointed the party’s deputy leader in the Rajya Sabha, replacing Raghav Chadha.
Officials said the searches were carried out at business entities linked to Mittal in Jalandhar and Phagwara, apart from some other locations. The agency also searched his residence at 16, The Mall Road, Jalandhar Cantt, according to officials. The central agency has not yet issued a detailed statement on the scope of the searches, and further details are awaited.
Mittal, 61, is a businessman and educationist who heads the Lovely Group, which runs a university of the same name. He was recently elevated within the party’s parliamentary ranks following a leadership reshuffle in the Upper House.
The timing of the ED action has drawn attention as it follows the AAP’s formal move to restructure its leadership in the Rajya Sabha. The party had written to the Rajya Sabha Secretariat seeking the removal of Raghav Chadha as deputy leader and requested that he no longer be allotted speaking time from the party’s quota.
Speaking earlier on the leadership change, Mittal had described such transitions as routine. “Earlier, ND Gupta ji was deputy leader, then Raghav ji took over, and now I have been given the responsibility. Tomorrow, someone else may get the opportunity,” he had said.
An academic-turned-politician, Mittal entered active politics in 2022 and was elected to the Rajya Sabha the same year. He has since served on several parliamentary committees, including Defence and Finance, and has also been part of international parliamentary delegations.
The AAP currently has 10 MPs in the Rajya Sabha, including seven from Punjab and three from Delhi.
Punjab CM condemns ED raids
Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann strongly condemned the ED raids at business entities linked to Mittal, alleging that the BJP has begun its "preparations" for the upcoming Punjab Assembly elections.
Reacting to the raids, Mann, in a post on X in Hindi, said, "BJP begins preparations for Punjab elections. ED raids at the home and university of AAP Rajya Sabha MP Ashok Mittal... typical Modi style."
Quoting a well-known couplet in the same post, the chief minister wrote, "Hum vo patte nahin, jo shakh se tut kar gir jayenge. Andhiyon ko keh do apni aukaat mein rahen" (We are not leaves that will fall off the branch; tell the storms to remain within their limits)."
The Punjab BJP leaders hit back at Mann and alleged that the AAP is a party of "thieves and robbers".
Union minister Ravneet Singh Bittu slammed CM Mann and alleged that his party was of "thieves and robbers" and under Prime Minister Narendra Modi's 'Swachh Bharat' initiative, "dirt" will be cleaned.
"Bhagwant Mann, your party is of thieves and robbers. The people of Punjab are filing cases against the state's ministers, and investigating agencies are catching your corrupt MPs. Modi ji's policy is 'Swachh Bharat'; under it, the filth will certainly be cleaned up," Bittu said in a post on X in Punjabi.
Punjab BJP chief Sunil Jakhar also chastised Mann for his remarks and said if his government fails to take action against corruption, then the Centre will have to.
"Who calls his curd sour, chief minister Bhagwant Mann ji! The deeds of your MLAs, ministers, MPs are becoming public every day. If your government does not take action, then the Government of India will have to take action against corruption," said Jakhar in a post on X in Punjabi.
AAP national convenor Arvind Kejriwal, Punjab ministers and MLAs, while tagging Mann's post on X, condemned the ED raids against MP Mittal, accusing the Centre of misusing central investigating agencies.
Kejriwal said the BJP has started its "preparations" for the upcoming poll in Punjab by using central agencies.
In a post on X in Hindi, he said, "Modi ji has started preparations for the elections in Punjab. But, the people of Punjab will not tolerate this... they would give a befitting reply to the BJP."
Cabinet minister Baljit Kaur said, "Misusing central agencies like ED and CBI is the most important tool of BJP's election strategy. ED's raid on newly appointed Deputy Leader of Rajya Sabha Ashok Mittal is BJP's way of dealing with political dissenters. Turning these agencies into instruments of pressure on political rivals weakens democracy itself."
Education minister Harjot Singh Bains alleged misuse of the central agencies by the BJP and said, "Unconstitutional misuse of agencies is BJP's go-to tactic against Aam Aadmi Party. ED has now been unleashed on our RS MP Ashok Mittal. Previous raids? No proof, no case, just pressure tactics. If anything, Modi should've at least learned by now that we will not back down. Truth will prevail."
Cabinet minister Ravjot Singh alleged that the BJP knows it could not fight elections on good governance, so it "hides" behind the ED. "Now BJP is targeting our RS MP Ashok Mittal. BJP's desperation is showing... Looks like they've conceded defeat one year before the elections!," alleged Singh.
Punjab Assembly elections are due early next year.