In a 2006 terror funding case, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Tuesday attached assets worth Rs 7.32 lakh of Aijaz Hussain Khawaja, a resident of Jammu and Kashmir's Baramulla district, under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002 (PMLA)
The attached assets consist of a portion of a residential flat at Jangpura, New Delhi and balances in the bank account held by the wife of the accused. The present market value of the attached property is higher.
In 2006, Khawaja was apprehended with a bag containing 2.05 kg RDX and Rs 49 lakhs in cash by the special cell of Delhi Police. He was sentenced for seven years under section 5(b) of Explosive Substances Act, 1908 along with Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967. The seized amount was also confiscated by the trial court.
An investigation under the PMLA revealed that the accused was operating as a hawala operator for financing various terror-related illegal activities in Jammu and Kashmir. Out of such illegal hawala operation, he had generated proceeds of crime to the tune of Rs 8.50 lakh during that period.
As a hawala operator, he was in touch with Muktiar Ahmed Bhatt alias Ahmed (a Pakistan based LeT operative in league with Pakistan ISI) to undertake hawala transactions/dealings for various separatists and terrorist activities. After identification of these assets in the form of house and bank balances, Provisional Attachment Order was issued under PMLA.
