ED raids travel agents in Punjab, Haryana in 'donkey route' case

Offices, houses of suspects, agents in Amritsar, Sangrur, Patiala and Moga and Ambala, Kurukshetra and Karnal are being raided

- Navrajdeep Singh

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Wednesday carried out raids at multiple locations in Punjab and Haryana as part of an investigation into money laundering linked to the 'donkey route' - a network facilitating illegal immigration to the United States.

The operation is based on 19 FIRs filed against travel agents and middlemen who exploited Indian citizens seeking to enter the US illegally.

Offices and houses of suspects and agents in 11 cities, including Amritsar, Sangrur, Patiala and Moga in Punjab and Ambala, Kurukshetra and Karnal in Haryana, are being raided under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), the sources said.

The money-laundering case stems from 19 FIRs registered by Punjab and Haryana police departments against the travel/visa agents and middlemen who cheated Indian citizens willing to go to the US illegally, they said.

As part of the action, the ED raided the house of Bhartiya Kisan Union (Totewala) leader Sukh Gill in Jalandhar. “The raids are underway and the details of the operation will be shared later,” said a senior ED official.