Former IAS Officer Gets 5-Year Sentence in Rs 1.20 Crore Money Laundering Case

Former IAS Officer Convicted In Money-Laundering Case, Gets 5 Years In Jail

New Delhi: Former IAS officer and ex-District Collector of Bhuj, Pradeep Nirankarnath Sharma, has been sentenced to five years of rigorous imprisonment in two Prevention of Money Laundering Act cases by a special court in Ahmedabad.

The Enforcement Directorate initiated its investigation following multiple police complaints filed in Gujarat between 2010 and 2014, which alleged corruption, criminal conspiracy, and irregular land allotment practices.

During his tenure as Collector of Kutch, Sharma was found guilty of illegally allocating government land at significantly undervalued rates. This misconduct resulted in a financial loss exceeding Rs 1.20 crore to the Gujarat government while providing personal financial gains to Sharma.

Previously, the Supreme Court dismissed Sharma's challenge to the applicability of money laundering charges, affirming that money laundering constitutes a continuing offense as long as proceeds from illegal activities are possessed or presented as legitimate funds.

In addition to the prison sentence, the PMLA court imposed a fine of Rs 50,000 on Sharma. If he fails to pay this amount, he will face an additional three months of simple imprisonment. Furthermore, the court ordered the confiscation of assets valued at Rs 1.32 crore, which had been previously attached by the ED during their investigation.

The court rejected Sharma's request for concurrent sentencing with his previous conviction in a corruption case. The judgment emphasized that as a senior IAS officer, Sharma had severely abused his official position.

The court specifically noted that offenses under the Prevention of Corruption Act and anti-money laundering legislation serve distinct purposes and therefore warranted separate punishments considering the seriousness of the crimes committed.