File picture of Artha Tatwa group head Pradip Sethi

Bhubaneswar, Sept. 7: The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) is looking into the alleged link of some ruling BJD leaders with an advertisement agency in which chairman-cum-managing director of Artha Tatwa (AT) group Pradeep Sethy had invested Rs 1.65 crore.

Sources said that the agency registered in March 2011 was operating from Unit IV area.

“We are looking for the two directors of the advertisement agency,” said a CBI official.

Sethy had told journalists yesterday that he had invested the money in the advertisement agency through Bikash Swain, the owner of a vernacular newspaper and the agency had close links with senior BJD leaders.

Swain is now in CBI custody after being taken on remand.

Sources said that the agency had clients ranging from reputed hospitals in the city to several government departments. Its clients also included two money deposit collection companies — AT Group and Seashore group.

Swain’s vernacular newspaper was also a client of the agency that was working in the field of event management, public relations campaigns and media planning and coordination.

Earlier some businessmen summoned by the Kharvela Nagar police station in connection with the money laundering scam had claimed that AT Group was planning to launch a television channel. Sources said that AT Group had signed an agreement with an agency to launch as many as six channels but the plan fell through following the arrest of Sethy.

The revelations made by Sethy have triggered fresh speculation about the alleged nexus of AT group with politicians, including some senior leaders of the BJD.

Earlier the CBI had raided the house of BJD legislator from Banki Pravat Tripathy in connection with the scam. It had also seized a number of photographs that showed Sethy in the company of BJD leaders.