New Delhi/ Bengaluru: The ED on Thursday intensified its grilling of arrested Congress MLA and former minister D.K. Shivakumar and also brought his daughter Aishwarya under its scanner quizzing her for seven hours at its office in New Delhi.
Mr Shivakumar who was arrested by the ED on September 3 in a money laundering case, was brought face to face with his associate Sachin Narayan, a businessman from Hassan and was questioned for the entire day. By the evening, the Congress strongman was shifted to Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital after he complained of high blood pressure and a stomach upset. The doctors administered him IV fluids and have advised him rest, said sources.
On Wednesday, members of the dominant Vokkaliga community to which Mr Shivakumar belongs, had staged a massive protest in Bengaluru against his arrest terming it political vendetta by the BJP and had also submitted a memorandum to governor Vajubhai Vala.
His daughter Aishwarya, a 22-year-old management graduate, was questioned and her statement recorded under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA). She arrived at the agency’s office in Khan Market in Delhi around 10.30 am and left at 7.30 pm. Aishwarya is also understood to have been confronted with documents and statements made by her father with regard to a trip to Singapore they are reported to have made together in 2017, officials said.
Aishwarya is a trustee in an education trust floated by her father. The trust, holding assets and businesses worth crores, operates a number of engineering and other colleges and Aishwarya is the main person behind them, the officials said.
Sources said Ms Aishwarya was questioned about the reported jump in her assets by over 100 times in the last five years. Five years ago, her assets were worth only Rs 1 crore, which have now grown to Rs 108 crore. Besides, there was a reported transaction of Ms Aishwarya with businessman and CCD Owner late V.G. Siddartha, who recently committed suicide.
The ED officials also reportedly questioned her about three acres of land in Uttarahalli in Bengaluru, which was transferred to her via a gift deed by her grandmother Mrs Gowramma. They wanted to know if she was aware of the sources using which her grandmother had purchased the land.
Meanwhile, the bail petition of Shivakumar will be coming up on Friday in the ED designated court. If he is denied bail, he would be remanded to judicial custody. Sources said there are chances of the ED seeking Shivakumar’s custody for four more days for further questioning, said sources.
