Journalist Rana Ayyub charged in money laundering case, cheating public

Journalist Rana Ayyub has been named in a chargesheet filed by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) on October 13.

According to a charge sheet filed by the ED against journalist Rana Ayyub under the anti-money laundering statute, the journalist allegedly used Rs 2.69 crore in publicly earned cash for herself and broke the foreign contribution law.

On October 12, the federal agency presented Ayyub with a prosecution charge before an exclusive Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) court in Ghaziabad (Uttar Pradesh).

The ED stated in a statement released on October 13 that Rana Ayyub "initiated three fundraiser charity initiatives on "Ketto platform" commencing from April 2020 and collected contributions totaling upto Rs 2,69,44,680."

The charity projects, according to the statement, were created to collect money for slum residents, farmers, Assam, Bihar, and Maharashtra relief efforts, as well as to assist Ayyub and her team in aiding individuals in India who had been affected by COVID-19.

The investigation revealed, according to the agency, that the money collected through online platforms was first deposited in the accounts of Ayyub's father and sister before being moved to her personal accounts.

According to reports, Ayyub utilised these funds to open a 50 lakh rupee fixed deposit for herself and transfer 50 lakh rupees to another bank account. The study found that just about Rs 29 lakh was used for relief operations. 

It also stated that Ayyub submitted fake bills in order to submit more claims for expenses related to relief work, and as a result, bank balances in Ayyub's accounts totaling Rs 1,77,27,704 (including an FD of Rs 50 lakh) were attached under the PMLA via a provisional attachment order dated February 4, 2022.

The ED claimed Ayyub "illegally" raised the Rs 2.69 crore and "cheated" donors who were members of the general public.

According to the agency and ED investigation, found that Rana Ayyub had started the aforementioned operations with the sole goal of defrauding the general public and gained proceeds of crime in the shape of FD and balances in bank accounts projecting them as untainted."

The Ghaziabad Police filed an FIR in September 2021 over possible discrepancies in donor payments, which is what led to the money laundering case against her.

Ayyub had denied similar claims, calling the allegations of money laundering against her "preposterous and utterly mala fide."