ED charges journalist Mahesh Langa for cheating and money laundering

New Delhi, April 22

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has charged Gujarat-based journalist Mahesh Langa under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), filing a prosecution complaint (similar to a charge sheet) against him. 

Langa, who had been a senior assistant editor at The Hindu, has been in jail since October in a GST evasion case  one of three filed against him by Gujarat police 

The ED’s complaint was filed with a special PMLA court in Ahmedabad on April 17, and the court accepted it the same day, the ED announced on April 22.

The ED has accused Langa of cheating and extortion using his media connections. The ED has claimed Langa allegedly threatened to damage complainants’ reputations by publishing defamatory articles unless they paid him large sums.

The ED stated that Mahesh Langa is involved in cheating and extortion of money by leveraging his alleged connections in the media. He threatened to tarnish the complainants’ reputations by publishing defamatory news articles unless they 
paid him large sums of money. This form of media manipulation was found central to his extortion activities, which caused an undue loss to the tune lakhs of rupees to various individuals. 

ED conducted an investigation, which established the trail of proceeds of crime generated by Mahesh Prabhudan Langa, and the same was attached on April 9. The assets include immovable property in the form of an Office located in Ahmedabad, Gujarat. 

The first case against him was registered in an alleged GST evasion case. Langa, who was then not even named in the FIR, was arrested by Ahmedabad crime branch officials. Neither Manoj- Langa’s relative who owned the company being accused of GST evasion – nor Langa’s wife, who is a silent partner it is, had been arrested.

The second was in a theft case against him after documents belonging to the Gujarat Maritime Board were allegedly found in his home.