Praful Patel appears before ED, grilled for 8 hours

Former Civil Aviation Minister and NCP leader Praful Patel on Monday was grilled for eight long hours as he appeared before the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in connection with a money laundering probe related to multi-crore aviation scam involving irregular allotment of profitable routes to foreign airlines to the detriment of the national carrier Air India.

Patel appeared before the agency on Monday and his statement was recorded under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), sources said. Patel’s role comes under the scanner following a criminal complaint registered by the ED for alleged irregularities in allocation of air routes for international airlines that purportedly led to losses for Air India.