S Gopal Puri
Dharamshala: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Monday carried out a high-profile raid at the office of the Additional Drug Controller in Dharamshala, intensifying its probe against tainted officer Nishant Sareen in a multi-state money laundering investigation under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).
The raid, confirmed by officials at the Chief Medical Officer (CMO) office, was part of a coordinated crackdown across Himachal Pradesh, Punjab, and Haryana.
ED officials seized crucial documents, digital devices, and files related to Sareen’s licensing and inspection activities. Sources said the Dharamshala raid is a continuation of investigations that began following Sareen’s arrest in 2019 by the State Vigilance & Anti-Corruption Bureau for alleged corruption during his earlier tenure in Baddi.
Despite past controversies, Sareen was reinstated and posted in Dharamshala — a decision now drawing heavy fire from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which has accused the Congress-led government of shielding corrupt officers.
“How can a person with such a history be allowed to oversee critical pharmaceutical regulation in the state? This raises serious questions about the government’s intent and integrity,” said BJP leader Bikram Thakur.
The ED’s probe, bolstered by fresh evidence, has widened to include Sareen’s father-in-law Ramesh Kumar Gupta and an associate Komal Khanna. Officials suspect that Sareen used his official position to facilitate favours for select pharma companies and laundered the proceeds through family-linked business networks.
The raid at the Dharamshala office was reportedly intense, with ED teams scanning files related to drug manufacturing licenses, quality inspections, and clearances issued to pharmaceutical.
Health department insiders revealed that Sareen had faced multiple departmental inquiries but continued to receive influential postings, allegedly under political patronage. “Red flags were raised time and again, but action was either delayed or diluted,” said a senior official.
The Congress government has so far remained silent on the ED action, but the developments have sparked a fresh political row in the state. Opposition leaders are demanding a CBI probe and immediate suspension of Sareen and other officials named in the ED’s investigation.
The central agency is expected to file a preliminary report with its Delhi headquarters in the coming days. Sources indicate that more raids and arrests could follow as the ED digs deeper into the pharma-inspection and licensing nexus in Himachal Pradesh.
