Bengaluru, Aug 13 (PTI) The Enforcement Directorate conducted raids on Wednesday at locations associated with Karnataka Congress MLA Satish Krishna Sail and others, focusing on a money laundering investigation linked to alleged illegal iron ore exports.
The searches, conducted under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), were carried out at approximately 15 sites across Karnataka, Goa, and Mumbai, according to official sources.
Sail serves as the Congress MLA for the Karwar assembly constituency in Uttara Kannada district.
Sources allege that Sail was involved in the illegal export of iron ore, initially seized by forest officials at Belekeri port in Karwar.
This illegal activity reportedly resulted in a loss of around Rs 38 crore to the government exchequer, although the actual value of the illegally exported ore is believed to be worth several hundred crores of rupees.
The investigation traces back to a 2010 probe by the Karnataka Lokayukta, which uncovered about eight lakh tons of illegally transported iron ore from Bellary to Belekeri port.
Last year, the Karnataka High Court suspended the seven-year prison sentence of the MLA in connection with this case.
Previously, a special court had convicted Sail and others in several cases concerning the illegal export of iron ore from the Belekeri port.
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