The Enforcement Directorate questioned former J&K Chief Minister Farooq Abdullah on July 31, in connection with the multicrore J&K Cricket Association(JKCA) scam dating back to 2002.
Farooq Abdullah was called to Chandigarh by the ED officials after taking cognisance of an FIR registered by the Central Bureau of Investigation on July 18, 2018. The ED officials said that the parliamentarian appeared before them and his statement was recorded under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).
The CBI charge-sheet stated that Farooq, who was the president of JKCA in 2002, allegedly transferred money amounting to more than Rs 112 crore to his and other office bearer's accounts. The funds had come in from the Board of Cricket Control in India (BCCI) for uplifting the cricket infrastructure in the state as well as training the young cricketers.
The J&K High Court had ordered for a probe into the case in 2012, when the then JKCA Chairman found misappropriation of Rs 1 crore. He had said that the funds had gone into the personal accounts of two office bearers. The two young cricketers of the state also brought to light the issue of funds diversion within the cricket association.
The CBI later questioned Farooq in July 2018. The National Conference patron appeared before CBI and said that he is open to any investigation. Farooq said that he took up the job of JKCA president because he was a senior politician and chief minister at that point.
Pertinently, Farooq's son Omar Abdullah, who is also the ex-chief minister of the state, has pledged innocence on his father's part in the multicrore cricket scam. After Amit Shah took over as the Union Home Minister, series of raids were conducted by the National Investigation Agency and ED on the residence and offices of various politicians and bureaucrats.
