The Enforcement Directorate has completed a preliminary inquiry into alleged money laundering linked to land purchases by the Punjab Cricket Association in Bathinda and Amritsar. According to the reported court proceedings, the agency has prepared a status report and submitted it in a sealed cover before the Punjab and Haryana High Court. The court did not examine the report’s contents at the latest hearing and directed the ED to formally place it before the Registry with an appropriate affidavit. The proceedings remain at the inquiry stage.

ED Completes Preliminary Probe Into PCA Land Purchases in Punjab

The Enforcement Directorate has completed a preliminary inquiry into the alleged money laundering in connection with the Punjab Cricket Association’s land purchases in Bathinda and Amritsar.

The Enforcement Directorate has completed a preliminary inquiry into alleged money laundering in the purchase of land by the Punjab Cricket Association at Bathinda and Amritsar.

According to The Tribune report, the ED has submitted its status report in a sealed cover before the Punjab and Haryana High Court.

Senior Advocate Dheeraj Jain, appearing for the Enforcement Directorate, told the High Court that the preliminary inquiry was completed and the report was ready for consideration.

The report was not taken into consideration in the last hearing, and the court ordered Dheeraj Jain to file the same before the Registry along with an appropriate affidavit.

The development comes in a matter arising out of a petition filed by Rakesh Handa against the Punjab Cricket Association and others as respondents.

ED preliminary enquiry focuses on PCA land purchases

The preliminary inquiry pertains to allegations of money laundering in land purchased by Punjab Cricket Association (PCA) in Punjab.

The proceedings are at the inquiry stage, and the court proceedings available do not prove that any individual or organization has committed money laundering.”

Submission of report opposed by senior advocates Vinod Ghai, Puneet Bali and Akshay Bhan appearing for PCA office-bearers and other respondents.

“The respondents had sought for the High Court to first go into the issue of the maintainability of the petition before dealing with the other issues, the report said.

At the hearing, the High Court did not open or look into the sealed status report of the ED and its contents were not in the public domain at that stage.

Instead, the court directed the Enforcement Directorate to place the report formally before the Registry through an appropriate affidavit for further consideration.

Rakesh Handa petition and PCA membership dispute

The present proceedings are in the nature of a petition filed by Rakesh Handa against the Punjab Cricket Association and others regarding the dispute.

The High Court had, on August 10, observed that Rakesh Handa had moved a complaint regarding financial irregularities in the Punjab Cricket Association.

That complaint was dismissed by the association's Ombudsman on March 10, 2026, after Rakesh Handa's membership of the association had been terminated.

The court order also mentioned that Rakesh Handa’s life membership was subsequently cancelled by the PCA Apex Council on May 21.

Rakesh Handa has contested the decision, saying he was not given a chance to be heard before his life membership was terminated.

The membership dispute and the allegations of financial irregularities are thus part of the larger legal battle now before the Punjab and Haryana High Court.

What happens next in the PCA case

The matter has been adjourned by the High Court till October 13, when it will be taken up before the court.

It is anticipated that at the next stage the court will consider the procedural objections raised by the respondents and determine the course of subsequent issues.

The sealed status report of the ED is also likely to come into play once it is formally filed with the Registry and taken up by the court.

Until then, the contents of the report have not been made public and allegations of money laundering have not been the subject of a judicial determination.

The case can thus shed more light on the nature of the allegations, the ED’s preliminary findings and the legal positions of the parties involved.

Readers who have followed the matter will notice Sprouts News continuing to distinguish established court proceedings from allegations, submissions and findings still subject to judicial consideration.

The next hearing on October 13 is expected to indicate how the High Court will address the preliminary enquiry, procedural objections, and underlying petition.