Ranchi, Sep 18 (IANS) The Enforcement Directorate's (ED) Ranchi Zonal Office conducted search and seizure operations at seven locations in Jharkhand and Odisha in connection with its money laundering investigation into the alleged Jharkhand State Co-operative Bank scam, the agency said on Friday. The searches, carried out under Section 17 of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), were part of its ongoing probe into what it described as a large-scale fraud allegedly perpetrated against the bank's Seraikela branch.According to the ED, businessman Sanjay Kumar Dalmia allegedly carried out the fraud in connivance with then officials of the JSCB. The agency’s search operation covers premises linked to the ongoing investigation into the alleged financial irregularities and suspected proceeds of crime arising from the case.

"ED, Ranchi, is conducting search and seizure action u/s 17 of PMLA in the case of the Jharkhand State Co-operative Bank Scam at a total of 7 locations in Jharkhand and Odisha," the agency statement said.The agency’s latest action comes amid several ongoing investigations being handled by its Ranchi Zonal Office into alleged financial crimes and money laundering in Jharkhand. The ED is empowered under the PMLA to conduct searches and seize material relevant to its investigation. Further details regarding the material recovered during the searches were not immediately available.The ED had also conducted searches in several states in connection with its probe into the petrol bomb attack on the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) office in Ranchi in June this year.The agency had carried out simultaneous searches at four locations in Delhi, Bihar, Jharkhand, and Karnataka as part of its investigation into suspected money laundering and financial transactions allegedly linked to the case. The probe was connected to a case registered by the National Investigation Agency (NIA), according to officials.

During those searches, ED teams examined documents, digital devices and other material relating to allegedly suspicious financial transactions. The agency was also examining whether illegal funding or money-laundering channels were used in the planning or execution of the attack.The petrol bomb attack took place on the night of June 16, when petrol bombs were hurled at the RSS provincial headquarters in Ranchi’s Nivaranpur area. The NIA registered a case in connection with the incident under RC-01/2026/NIA/RNC.

/ IANS