New Delhi, Dec 4 (UNI) The Enforcement Directorate(ED), Jaipur Zonal Office, stated on Thursday that it has arrested Mohammed Sadeeque alias Sadik Khan, the former president of the Alfurkan Educational Trust (AET) in Bikaner.
The arrest is for his alleged involvement in money laundering arising from the systematic diversion of public donations, extensive cash-based criminal activities, suspicious foreign associations, and conduct indicative of radicalisation and involvement in unlawful networks.
He was produced before a special PMLA court in Jaipur. The ED sought his custodial remand, which was approved by the court. Officials said they were granted three-day custodial remand for the accused. The ED initiated a PMLA investigation based on two FIRs registered by Rajasthan Police and credible information.
It is alleged that Mohammed Sadeeque was involved in radicalisation activities, forced religious conversions, association with various overseas radical outfits, and suspicious high-value financial transactions routed through his and his family members’ bank accounts, running into crores of rupees.
The police FIRs and chargesheets also mention charges of attempt to murder and the use of illegal arms by the accused.
The ED investigation has revealed that Md. Sadeeque formed the Alfurkan Educational Trust, which manages Masjid-e-Ayesha and routinely collected sizeable public donations through this trust, primarily in cash, with no financial record-keeping.
The donations collected for religious, social, and charitable purposes were allegedly retained entirely in cash by Mohammed Sadeeque under his sole, undocumented control.
The probe indicates that these unaccounted cash collections became the primary source of funds he diverted for personal use and to finance a range of illegal activities.
This included undertaking frequent foreign visits to meet banned and radical outfits overseas to promote his radical agenda. Examination of his foreign travels shows that Sadeeque undertook multiple visits to Bangladesh, Nepal, Qatar, and Oman using unverified cash funds, without any lawful financial trail.
During his visit to Bangladesh, he worked closely with one Md. Salim alias Saurabh Vaidya, who was later arrested by the Madhya Pradesh ATS for alleged links with the proscribed organisation Hizb-ut-Tahrir.
Further investigation has established that Sadeeque had no legitimate or consistent source of income for several years and subsisted on unlawful cash-based operations, including gambling, illicit liquor trade, and suspected dealings in illegal country-made firearms.
The link between these criminal activities and the misappropriated donations is reinforced by the recovery of three countrymade weapons and live cartridges from him and his associates in a case for which a chargesheet has already been filed by the local police.
The façade of religious and charitable work was thus consciously used by Sadeeque to conceal deeper networks of unaccounted, clandestine, and criminal operations.
The ED investigation has further revealed that Sadeeque met members of Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB/JuM) and maintained contact with them even after returning to India.
The probe also examined a widely circulated video in which an inflammatory speech is attributed to him, which was made with the deliberate intention of provoking communal sentiments.
The investigation has also revealed that a foreign country’s flag was burnt at public gatherings under his supervision and that he mobilised cash donations by orchestrating such activities designed to inflame sentiments, exploit religious sensitivities, and convert public anger into personal financial gain.
The arrest of Mohammed Sadeeque marks a significant step in dismantling a network of shadow financial operations, suspected radical influences, and unlawful activities operating under the guise of charitable and religious work.
