After the Enforcement Directorate raided the premises of Navneet Kalra and Gagan Duggal, newer details have emerged that after allegedly black-marketing oxygen, Kalra and co. imported oxygen concentrators from China and sold them as ‘German technology’.
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) after raiding the premises of Navneet Kalra and Gagan Duggal in connection with its money laundering probe into alleged hoarding and black marketing of oxygen concentrators, not only recovered 150 foreign brand liquor bottles but also unearthed over 7,000 oxygen concentrators which were allegedly imported from China which were sold to people at exorbitant prices by falsely claiming that German technology was used in the manufacturing of the oxygen concentrators.
The central agency raided Kalra and Duggal’s residences at Mandi Road at South Delhi’s Mehrauli, Kalra’s restaurants – Khan Chacha, Town Hall, and Nega & Ju as well as Dayal Opticals in upscale Khan Market.
An anonymous first officer was quoted by Hindustan Times as saying, “The forensic examination of the concentrators has revealed that they were low-quality equipment. Kalra and Duggal bought these in China and the same were routed to India via Hong Kong.”
According to the agency, the concentrators which were imported at Rs 15,000 per unit were sold at a whopping price of Rs 69,999 per unit to kin of the Covid infected patients. Another ED officer said, “The duo took advantage of a raging pandemic and made a huge profit by cheating the public.”
Earlier this week, Kalra’s counsel senior Congress leader Abhishek Manu Singhvi denying the allegations of black marketing and hoarding, submitted before the Court that the oxygen concentrators were purchased by the importer namely Matrix Services Limited and that the same was done through proper legal channels including GST payments.
While Singhvi advocated for Kalra’s release, BJP Leader and MP Meenakshi Lekhi claimed that Kalra has strong connections with Congress leaders. Lekhi remarked that Kalra was given the membership of Golf Club — one of the most premium clubs in the national capital, by Congress leader Ajay Maken when he was the urban development minister in the UPA-I government. Lekhi further added that Kalra’s Facebook page shows his pictures with Congress leaders Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi.
Read More: Oxygen black marketer Navneet Kalra gets arrested despite a Congress leader’s defence in Court
As reported by TFI previously, according to the invoices, each Oxygen concentrator had been procured in bulk from China and Hong Kong for not more than Rs 14,000 – Rs 16,000 and was being sold in India between Rs 50,000- Rs 70,000. Nearly 5,000 such Oxygen concentrators were sold in April 2021, and another 1,800 in May at the hiked prices, as Kalra made a monstrous profit.
People like Navneet Kalra represent the worst of humanity and one hopes that despite the Congress ecosystem’s spirited defence of Kalra, the Indian judicial system can deliver justice in this case.