Money Laundering Case: Journalist Rana Ayyub Stopped From Boarding Flight To London

In February, after seizing Rs 1.77 crore from journalist Rana Ayub, ED officials said that she allegedly did not use the donation given for 3 campaigns for the right purpose.

Journalist Rana Ayyub (File photo: getty)

New Delhi: Journalist Rana Ayub on Tuesday was stopped at the Mumbai airport while she was on her way to London based on a lookout notice issued against her by the Enforcement Directorate in connection with a money laundering case.

"I was stopped today at the Indian immigration while I was about to board my flight to London to deliver my speech on the intimidation of journalists with International Center for Journalists. I was to travel to Italy right after to deliver the keynote address at the journalism festival on the Indian democracy," the journalist tweeted.

I was stopped today at the Indian immigration while I was about to board my flight to London to deliver my speech on the intimidation of journalists with @ICFJ . I was to travel to Italy right after to deliver the keynote address at the @journalismfest on the Indian democracy

— Rana Ayyub (@RanaAyyub) March 29, 2022

“All these events with Dr. Julie Posetti, Doughty Street International and the journalism festival have been planned and publicised all over my social media for weeks. Yet, curiously the Enforcement directorate summon arrived in my mail much after I was stopped at the immigration. What do you fear?” she said.

In February, the Enforcement Directorate seized Rs 1.77 crore from journalist Rana Ayub. After seizing Rs 1.77 crore from journalist Rana Ayub, ED officials said that she allegedly did not use the donation given for 3 campaigns for the right purpose. The ED has taken this step on the basis of the FIR registered by the Ghaziabad Police of Uttar Pradesh.

The police held up the case on a grievance made by Vikas Sankrityayan, organizer of an NGO called "Hindu IT Cell" and an inhabitant of Indirapuram in Ghaziabad.

As per the FIR, the assets were raised as a component of three campaigns: funds for slum dwellers and farmers during April-May 2020; relief work for Assam, Bihar and Maharashtra during June-September 2020; and help for COVID-19 affected individuals in India during May-June 2021.

"Funds totalling Rs 2,69,44,680 were raised on Ketto by Rana Ayyub. These funds were withdrawn in the bank accounts of her sister and father," the office said.

Out of this sum, Rs 72,01,786 was withdrawn in her own bank account, Rs 37,15,072 was withdrawn in her sister Iffat Shaikh's account, and Rs 1,60,27,822 was withdrawn in her dad Mohd Ayyub Waquif's bank account, it said.

"Fake bills were found to have been prepared by Rana Ayyub in the name of some entities to claim expenses on relief work. Expenses made for personal travel by air were claimed as expense for relief work," it alleged.