New Delhi, Nov 24 (IANS): The Enforcement Directorate (ED) said on Thursday said that it carried out searches at 13 locations in Haryana and Uttar Pradesh at the premises of four executive engineers, two divisional accountants and other employees of Uttar Haryana Bijli Vitran Nigam (UHBVN), Yamunanagar.

The ED said that it carried out the searches under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) at 13 locations in Haryana and Uttar Pradesh on Wednesday.

The agency said the search operations resulted in the recovery and seizure of digital devices, incriminating documents regarding immovable properties, fixed deposits, bank lockers and unaccounted cash to the tune of Rs 27.50 lakh.

The ED case is based on two FIRs registered by the Haryana Police at Yamunannagar relating to fraud done in UHBVN, Yamunanagar, wherein a huge amount of government money was misappropriated and embezzled by transfer from the government accounts to the accounts of persons (other than bonafide beneficiaries) in connivance with the officials of UHBVN, Yamunanagar.

The UHBVN officials committed offence by fraudulent transfer of government funds to non-bonafide beneficiaries, causing loss of public money to the tune of Rs 55 crore.

"The ED probe revealed that the officials of UHBVN prepared bogus vouchers and on the basis of these, they prepared cheques which got credited in the bank accounts of non-bonafide persons and the money was subsequently siphoned off," the agency stated.