ED investigating mine owners selectively, alleges NGO

Goa Foundation, whose petition against illegal mining resulted in a ban on iron ore extraction in Goa, today accused the Enforcement Directorate of sparing those with more financial or political muscle in its investigation into money laundering.
"ED is very selective in filing the cases (against the mine owners). Why only Radha Timblo? They should go against all the big fries," the NGO's director Claude Alvares said at a press conference here.
The NGO will write to Justice M B Shah, who headed the probe into illegal mining in Goa, about this, he said.
ED has issued notices to 16 companies for probe related to money laundering; it has questioned Radha Timblo, former director of Timblo Industries who figures as having a foreign bank account in the list submitted by the government in the Supreme Court.

Alvares said all the mine-owning families should be investigated for parking their black money overseas.
Goa Foundation representatives had met officials of Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) and asked why the iron ore exports from 2007 to 2012 were not audited, he said.
It had also written to the chief secretary of Goa, demanding that Rs 1,18,661 crore should be recovered from various mine owners for illegally exporting ore, he said.
"The value of the minerals exported during 2007-2012 works out to Rs 65,058 crore. Simple interest up to March 31, 2014 works out to additional 53,603 crore. The total is Rs 1,18,661 crore which is around ten times the annual budget of the state," Alvares claimed.