ED Conducts Raids Across Assam in Fake Supply Order Scam; ₹14.5 Lakh Cash, High-End Vehicles Recovered

The Directorate of Enforcement (ED), Guwahati Zonal Office, conducted extensive search operations on November 18 at six locations spread across Guwahati, Kokrajhar, Tezpur, and New Delhi. These searches were carried out under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002, as part of an ongoing investigation into a large-scale fake supply order scam involving Rishiraj Kaundinya, Biju Das, Mukesh Jain, and several others. The ED’s probe focuses on allegations that the accused individuals orchestrated a fraudulent scheme by issuing fake purchase orders in the names of various autonomous councils, including the Dima Hasao Autonomous Council and the Mising Autonomous Council.

According to ED officials, the scam revolved around the creation and use of forged government documents to deceive suppliers and obtain large quantities of goods. During the coordinated raids, ED officers seized ₹14.5 lakh in cash and froze multiple bank accounts that cumulatively held ₹13.68 lakh. Additionally, the agency confiscated two luxury vehicles—an Innova Hyryder and a Toyota Fortuner—that are believed to have been purchased using proceeds from the criminal operation. A land sale agreement valued at ₹65 lakh was also seized, as investigators suspect it may be directly linked to laundered money. Apart from these, documents detailing several other properties owned by the accused, along with numerous incriminating files and digital evidence, were recovered from the searched premises.

The ED’s preliminary findings indicate that the accused ran a highly organised racket involving the fabrication of government documents. This included creating fake supply orders, forging official signatures, issuing counterfeit cheques, and producing fraudulent payment clearance notes. These falsified documents were then presented to suppliers to persuade them to accept large, high-value supply orders for items such as blankets, tarpaulins, dyed cotton yarn, solar equipment, and materials meant for major infrastructure projects.

In order to process these orders, the suppliers were allegedly pressured to pay hefty commissions in advance. Believing the documents to be genuine, many suppliers complied, hoping to secure large government contracts. However, after obtaining the goods, the accused individuals reportedly diverted the materials or offloaded them illegally. As a result, the suppliers never received any payment for the goods they had delivered. The scam is believed to have caused a massive non-payment loss amounting to ₹9.86 crore, while the accused illegally collected around ₹2.04 crore in commissions by exploiting the fraudulent documentation.

The Enforcement Directorate has stated that the investigation is still underway, with ongoing efforts to trace the remaining proceeds of crime and identify all properties connected to the scam. The agency also plans to initiate attachment proceedings against the assets acquired through illicit means. ED officials added that further legal actions will be taken to ensure recovery of funds and compensation to the affected suppliers under due process. The investigation aims to dismantle the entire network involved in the fake supply order scam and hold all responsible individuals accountable under the law.