The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has arrested an Assam resident, Rumi Kalita, in connection with the digital arrest of a Ludhiana-based industrialist under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002. According to an official statement, the Enforcement Directorate, Jalandhar Zonal Office recently conducted search operations at 11 locations across Assam and four other states – Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan, Gujarat – under PMLA, 2002, in connection with money laundering investigation related to the digital arrest case of industrialist, S. P. Oswal. During the search operations, various incriminating documents and digital devices were recovered and seized. “Rumi Kalita was arrested under PMLA on December 23, 2025 and her transit remand was allowed by the CJM Court, Kamrup (Metro), Guwahati, for four days, and subsequently, she was produced before the Special Court, PMLA in Jalandhar, which granted ED custody of 10 days up to January 2, 2026,” the statement said. Notably, the ED had initiated investigation on the basis of an FIR registered by Cyber Crime Police Station, Ludhiana under various provisions of BNSS, 2023. Subsequently, nine more FIRs, registered by various police authorities regarding cybercrime/ digital arrest related to the same group of criminals, were also taken up in the same investigation.
“The ED investigation revealed that during the digital arrest of S.P Oswal, the fraudsters impersonating officers of the Central Bureau of Investigation and by using forged official and judicial documents forced him to transfer Rs 7 crore in the various accounts out of which Rs 5.24 crore were recovered from the accounts and were transferred back,” the statement said. “The remaining funds were transferred to various mule accounts maintained in the name of various entities and persons being labourers/delivery boys which were either further diverted or withdrawn in cash immediately. It was also found during investigation that the amounts cheated from victims were immediately diverted by a group of persons in various mule accounts and the credentials of those accounts were being used by Rumi Kalita in lieu of a certain percentage of cheated money to be given to her as her share,” the statement said.Various incriminating evidences gathered during the search show that Kalita was deeply involved in diversion and layering of the Proceeds of Crime. Further investigation is underway. Earlier, searches were conducted on January 31, 2025 in the case, which resulted in recovery and seizure of incriminating documents.