ED Attaches Rs 2.15 Crore Assets of Ex-Assam Food Safety Officer in Corruption Case

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has provisionally attached assets worth approximately Rs 2.15 crore belonging to former Senior Food Safety Officer Munindra Bhuyan of Assam, in connection with a disproportionate assets case being investigated under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).

The action follows an FIR registered in 2023 by the Chief Minister's Special Vigilance Cell under the Prevention of Corruption Act, which had alleged that Bhuyan accumulated wealth far beyond his known sources of income during his tenure in the Health and Family Welfare Department.

Also Read: Disproportionate assets case: ED attaches Rs 8.94 cr from ex-official

Investigators found that between April 2001 and February 2022 — the designated check period — Bhuyan had acquired assets worth Rs 3.80 crore, amounting to over 223 per cent of his legitimate earnings during the same period.

Several properties in Guwahati were found to have been purchased either in the accused's name or in the names of family members, in what officials described as an attempt to conceal ownership and the origin of funds.

Investigators also found that the declared values in sale deeds were significantly understated — in some cases many times lower than actual market value — pointing to deliberate concealment of illicit funds.

The ED's probe also uncovered multiple unexplained cash deposits in bank accounts held by Bhuyan and his wife between 2007 and 2021.

These transactions, amounting to several lakhs, could not be justified through legitimate income and are suspected to be proceeds of crime.

Further scrutiny revealed that the accused and his spouse had maintained ten life insurance policies across different companies, with premiums believed to have been paid using illicit funds.

The provisionally attached assets include:

• Three immovable properties in Guwahati

• Bank balances held in the names of the accused and family members

• Surrender value of insurance policies held across multiple companies

Officials confirmed that further investigation into the case is ongoing.