Punjab minister Sanjeev Arora arrested by ED

The ED has arrested Punjab Industries Minister Sanjeev Arora on Saturday after the agency  carried out fresh raids against him and persons allegedly linked to him as part of a newly registered money laundering probe. The fresh ED move has intensified the political confrontation between the AAP government in Punjab and the BJP-led Centre. The Enforcement Directorate arrested Arora from his official residence in Chandigarh, making him the first sitting minister of the Bhagwant Mann government to be taken into such custody.
The arrest came at the end of a day of searches across over a dozen locations in Punjab, Chandigarh and Haryana, targeting Sanjeev Arora's residence, the corporate offices of Hampton Sky Realty Limited, and the premises of several associates. It is the third ED raid on Sanjeev Arora in under a year — the second in a single month. The agency has been investigating an alleged Rs157-crore GST and export fraud involving fake invoices generated by non-existent firms in Delhi-NCR to claim input tax credit and export refunds on purported mobile phone purchases. Investigators have alleged that Rs 102.5 crore was routed through two UAE-based shell entities.
Prior to arrest, the ED had provisionally attached bank accounts, demat holdings and immovable assets linked to Sanjeev Arora and Hampton Sky Realty under foreign exchange- and tax-related laws. Arora, 62, is an AAP MLA from the Ludhiana West assembly seat.
AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal launched a sharp attack on the BJP after Arora's, claiming the crackdown would politically backfire on the party. Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann, speaking at a press conference in Sangrur on Saturday, framed ED actions as part of a coordinated BJP strategy to destabilise his government. “The BJP's motive is not to recover black money but to send a message that joining their party ensures immunity,” Mann said, pointing to the case of Rajya Sabha MP Ashok Mittal.