Indore, June 3 (IANS) The Enforcement Directorate (ED)’s Indore Sub-Zonal Office has arrested three key accused persons in connection with the multi-crore Indore Municipal Corporation fake bill scam, officials said on Wednesday.

The arrests of Abhay Singh Rathore, Mohd. Zakir and Rahul Badera were arrested on June 1 under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002.

The accused were produced before the Indore Special PMLA Court which granted the ED their custody till June 5 for further questioning.

The investigation by the ED was initiated on the basis of multiple FIRs and charge sheets filed by MG Road police Station in Indore under various sections of the Indian Penal Code.

These cases relate to the fraudulent withdrawal of funds from the Indore Municipal Corporation treasury through fake bills, forged work orders, fabricated records, and non-existent project works.

During the ED probe, it was revealed that between 2018 and 2023 fake and bogus bills amounting to around Rs 119.53 crore were submitted to the corporation for works that were never executed.

Based on these forged documents around Rs 86.54 crore was fraudulently disbursed from the municipal treasury.

The ED further established that prior to 2018 an additional Rs 6.22 crore was siphoned off using similar methods.

The total amount involved in the scam has been quantified at around Rs 92.76 crore, which is being treated as proceeds of crime under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act.

Abhay Singh Rathore, who was serving as assistant engineer in the Indore Municipal Corporation, has emerged as a principal conspirator. He allegedly played a key role in preparing and processing fake work orders that facilitated the scam.

Contractors Mohd Zakir and Rahul Badera through firms controlled by them received around Rs 71.78 crore against these bogus bills.

The accused submitted fabricated documents and ensured payments were released without any actual work being carried out causing substantial loss to the civic body.

In earlier actions, the ED conducted searches and seized cash and valuables worth around Rs 22.04 crore.

Subsequently, immovable properties valued at around Rs 34 crore were provisionally attached on July 3, 2025.

These actions have helped trace part of the laundered funds.

The agency is continuing its investigation to trace the remaining proceeds of crime, identify additional assets, and uncover the full money trail.

This scam has highlighted serious governance issues in municipal financial management and raised concerns over the misuse of public funds meant for civic development in Indore.

–IANS

sktr/khz