ED attaches property of retired Assam IPS officer in money laundering case
Guwahati hotel of former Assam Police under the lens of Directorate of Enforcement. | Photo credit: Special arrangement
The Guwahati area office of the Enforcement Directorate (ED) has provisionally attached immovable property worth ₹53.28 crore in a money laundering case against a retired Assam IPS officer, his family members and their group companies.
The connection was made under the relevant section of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002.
The ED said in a statement that the investigation against Prasanta Kumar Dutta, who retired as Deputy Inspector General in 2019, was initiated on the basis of a First Information Report (FIR) registered by the Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Department of the Assam Police.
The police FIR said that during his tenure from 1992 to 2019, Mr. Dutta amassed assets grossly disproportionate to his known sources of income. He and his wife were found to own undisclosed assets of around ₹77.21 crore against a disclosed income of ₹7.23 crore and disclosed expenditure of ₹9.04 crore.
“The net disproportionate assets have been reasonably ascertained at around ₹ 79.01 crore based on the materials on record,” the ED said.
An investigation under the PMLA revealed that “proceeds of crime thus generated were laundered and projected as pristine assets” through three closely held companies — Mahamaya Estates Pvt. Ltd., Ishan Commercial Pvt. Ltd. and Murari Commodities Pvt. Ltd. The registered office of all three companies was found to be non-existent.
“Investigations have shown the introduction of unexplained cash accumulating ₹ 14,74,99,091 into the accounts of family members and companies and the layering of funds through shell shareholders, shell entities based in Kolkata and circular bank transfers before integrating into hotel properties and apartments in Mumbai,” the statement said.
“The persons posing as shareholders of the three companies were found to be largely persons without independent means, including fictitious shareholders or name-lending shareholders, having no source of income commensurate with the share capital attributed to them and unable to explain the source of the funds,” he added.
The ED said that after his retirement, Mr. Dutta, promoted from the Assam Police Service, held 3,70,000 shares of Ishan Commercial Pvt. Ltd. transferred from fictitious shareholders to his name. This made him the largest shareholder of this company, which owns three of the four hotels in the family name.
The ED has provisionally attached these four hotels, all in Guwahati, and two residential flats in Andheri West Mumbai.
“Further investigations are underway,” the agency said.
Published – 27 June 2026 19:30 IST