<p>Dehradun: The Enforcement Directorate on Wednesday conducted searches against Uttarakhand Congress leader and former minister Harak Singh Rawat as part of a money laundering investigation, official sources said.</p><p>The searches were carried out at multiple premises in Uttarakhand, including his residence in Dehradun, apart from Delhi and Chandigarh, they said.</p> .<p>Rawat, 63, had quit the BJP ahead of the 2022 Uttarakhand assembly polls and joined the Congress.</p><p>The ED investigation is understood to be linked to alleged illegal activities in the state's Corbett Tiger Reserve.</p> .<p>The Uttarakhand government's vigilance department had also raided Rawat last year in connection with a probe into alleged large-scale felling of trees and illegal constructions in the tiger reserve.</p><p>Thousands of trees were allegedly felled and constructions were carried out in the reserve during Rawat's tenure as the state forest minister in the previous BJP government.</p><p>Apart from the Congress and the BJP, Rawat has also been part of the BSP in the past.</p><p>He began his political career with the BJP in the undivided Uttar Pradesh, joined the BSP in 1996 and quit it two years later to join the Congress.</p><p>After a long stint of 18 years with the Congress, he rebelled against the previous Harish Rawat government to join the BJP in 2016.</p><p>He was expelled from the BJP in 2022 as he allegedly insisted on party tickets for himself and his daughter-in-law for the assembly polls.</p>
<p>Dehradun: The Enforcement Directorate on Wednesday conducted searches against Uttarakhand Congress leader and former minister Harak Singh Rawat as part of a money laundering investigation, official sources said.</p><p>The searches were carried out at multiple premises in Uttarakhand, including his residence in Dehradun, apart from Delhi and Chandigarh, they said.</p> .<p>Rawat, 63, had quit the BJP ahead of the 2022 Uttarakhand assembly polls and joined the Congress.</p><p>The ED investigation is understood to be linked to alleged illegal activities in the state's Corbett Tiger Reserve.</p> .<p>The Uttarakhand government's vigilance department had also raided Rawat last year in connection with a probe into alleged large-scale felling of trees and illegal constructions in the tiger reserve.</p><p>Thousands of trees were allegedly felled and constructions were carried out in the reserve during Rawat's tenure as the state forest minister in the previous BJP government.</p><p>Apart from the Congress and the BJP, Rawat has also been part of the BSP in the past.</p><p>He began his political career with the BJP in the undivided Uttar Pradesh, joined the BSP in 1996 and quit it two years later to join the Congress.</p><p>After a long stint of 18 years with the Congress, he rebelled against the previous Harish Rawat government to join the BJP in 2016.</p><p>He was expelled from the BJP in 2022 as he allegedly insisted on party tickets for himself and his daughter-in-law for the assembly polls.</p>