The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has attached land and buildings of Mohammad Ali Jauhar University in Rampur, estimating their current market value at approximately ₹ 1,170 crore, in a money laundering investigation against former Uttar Pradesh Cabinet minister Mohammad Azam Khan, the Maulana Mohammad Ali Jauhar Trust and others.
The complaints alleged that agricultural land belonging to farmers had been forcibly taken over for the university. The debris from the demolished houses was allegedly transported to the university. The cases also allege that cleaning machinery purchased for the Rampur Nagar Palika was diverted to the campus.
The ED initiated its money laundering investigation on the basis of 26 FIRs registered at Azeem Nagar police station in Rampur under Section 384 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and other provisions. The agency further examined 28 other FIRs registered by Rampur police against Azam Khan and others. These cases include allegations that houses belonging to several families in Rampur city were demolished in 2016, their occupants assaulted and threatened, and cash, jewellery and cattle taken away.
In a statement issued on Wednesday, the ED’s Lucknow zonal office said its investigation under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) had identified assets worth ₹ 426.46 crore as alleged proceeds of crime. The managing director of a company that received Public Works Department (PWD) contracts worth approximately ₹ 186 crore reportedly told investigators that 30% to 40% of the contract value had been used to purchase construction material for the campus. The agency conducted searches at the university and related premises on August 19, 2026, seizing electronic devices and records it described as incriminating.
The agency claimed that government funds, construction materials and donations from contractors executing public works had been diverted to build the university campus. The investigation found that contractors executing government projects allegedly diverted money and construction material to the university. Further investigation is in progress, the statement added.
Separately, the ED said the income tax department had revoked the trust’s registration under the Income Tax Act.
