ED arrests Karnataka Congress MLA Satish Sail

Bengaluru, Sept 10 (UNI) The Enforcement Directorate (ED) today arrested Karnataka Congress legislator Satish Krishna Sail in connection with an alleged money laundering case linked to illegal iron ore exports, official sources said, intensifying the central agency’s crackdown on political leaders in the state.

Sail, 59, who represents the Karwar Assembly constituency in Uttara Kannada district, was taken into custody during the intervening night of September 9-10 after several hours of questioning at the ED’s Bengaluru zonal office. He was produced before a special court in Bengaluru, which remanded him to one-day ED custody.

The MLA will be produced again when the agency is expected to seek further custodial remand for detailed interrogation, the officials said.

The ED case against Sail stems from allegations that a company linked to him was involved in the illegal export of iron ore from Karnataka.

Investigators believe the proceeds from such transactions were laundered through multiple channels. The agency had earlier conducted coordinated searches on August 13 and 14 at premises in Karwar, Goa, Mumbai and Delhi as part of its probe.
This arrest marks the second major action against a Congress legislator in Karnataka in recent weeks. On August 29, the ED had arrested Chitradurga MLA KC Veerendra, popularly known as ‘Puppy’, in a money laundering case connected to illegal betting operations.

Both arrests have triggered sharp reactions within the state political circles, with the Congress terming the actions as “selective” and “politically motivated,” while the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has maintained that the law must take its own course.

The fresh development comes at a politically sensitive time in Karnataka, where the Congress government has already been under pressure over allegations of corruption and administrative lapses.
Party leaders are expected to rally behind Sail, even as the ED intensifies its pursuit of cases involving mining and export irregularities dating back to the illegal mining scam that rocked the state over a decade ago.

The iron ore export scandal, which once led to the resignation of a chief minister and the prosecution of several politicians and mining barons, continues to reverberate through Karnataka’s political and legal corridors. The ED’s latest move signals that the agency is reopening older threads while widening its investigation into alleged money laundering channels.
Sail, a first-time MLA from Karwar, has so far maintained his innocence and has accused the agency of targeting him on flimsy grounds. His legal team is expected to oppose any extended custodial remand sought by the ED when he is produced before the court later today.