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Jharkhand Congress MLA's claim after ED raids: ‘Was offered BJP ticket’
The ED conducted searches at multiple locations linked to Congress MLA Amba Prasad as part of its money laundering investigation.
Jharkhand Congress MLA Amba Prasad on Wednesday night reacted to the searches by the Directorate of Enforcement (ED) at premises linked to her.
Prasad claimed that the ED searches were a result of her refusal to join the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), reported PTI.
“I was offered an MP ticket from the BJP for Hazaribagh, which I declined. Some people from the BJP side pressurised me to contest from the side of BJP MP Chatra. We are from the Congress party, and we have consistently won the Barkagaon seat,” Amba told PTI.
She added: “We are very strong in that area of Hazaribagh. I saw it from the party's and media's perspective that I am a winning candidate. So, this is a consequence of my refusal, and today I have been subjected to torture throughout the day, which is unacceptable.”
The ED conducted searches at multiple locations linked to Congress MLA Amba Prasad including her official residence in Ranchi as part of its money laundering investigation.
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The federal agency said searches were carried out at 17 locations related to the Congress MLA from Barkagaon assembly in Hazaribag district and associates.
Amba, the youngest MLA in the current assembly, is the daughter of former minister Yogendra Saw. Her mother Nirmala Devi is also a former legislator.
On Tuesday, Devi said that ED raided the premises of her daughter to break her morale ahead of the Lok Sabha polls, reported PTI.
"I had no idea of the raid, as I was not inside. I knew it through media persons. I am no longer in politics. I had told my daughter to leave politics," she said.
Devi said, "The action (ED raids) is being carried out to break the morale before the election".
Jharkhand Congress legislative party leader Alamgir Alam blamed the BJP for the raids and said that only members of the opposition are being targeted.
"Why only leaders of the opposition are being targeted. This is just the beginning of the election session and they (BJP) cleared their intentions", he told reporters, according to PTI.
