ED attaches Jauhar University assets worth Rs 426.46 crore in case against Azam Khan
The ED has provisionally attached land and buildings of Mohammad Ali Jauhar University, Rampur, worth Rs 426.46 crore, which it alleges are proceeds of crime.
Key points
- The ED's Lucknow office has provisionally attached land and buildings of Mohammad Ali Jauhar University, Rampur, under the PMLA.
- The ED alleges Rs 426.46 crore of the campus cost is proceeds of crime; it puts the attached property's market value at Rs 1,170 crore.
- The attachment must be confirmed by the PMLA Adjudicating Authority, and the ED's allegations are yet to be tested in court.
Mohammad Azam Khan, former Cabinet Minister, Government of Uttar Pradesh, is among those named in a money laundering case in which the Enforcement Directorate (ED) has provisionally attached land and buildings of Mohammad Ali Jauhar University, Rampur, to the extent of Rs 426.46 crore. The ED said in a release dated 28 October 2026 that the attached property has a current market value of about Rs 1,170 crore. The campus is held by the Maulana Mohammad Ali Jauhar Trust, which the ED says he founded and controls.
What Happened
The ED said its investigation under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) began from 26 police FIRs in Rampur alleging that farmers' agricultural land was forcibly taken over for the university. According to the ED, funds meant for public works were diverted to the university, government works were carried out on its private campus, and money from government contractors was routed back to the trust as donations. The ED said it shared this information with the Uttar Pradesh Police, which registered an FIR on 13 October 2026 under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988.
The agency alleges that works worth Rs 6.60 crore were executed on the campus from MLA and MLC local area development funds, and that the state government sanctioned Rs 23.41 crore for a pandal, a hostel and a hospital block there. According to the ED, a 2015 order kept the Rs 12.16 crore pandal as state property, but a 2016 order transferred its ownership to the university. The ED notes that in 2015 and 2016 he was a Cabinet Minister holding the Urban Development portfolio.
An independent government valuer put the cost of the campus at Rs 499.09 crore, the ED said. The agency alleges that only Rs 72.63 crore of this is explained by legitimate sources, and treats the balance of Rs 426.46 crore as proceeds of crime.
What It Means
A provisional attachment is a temporary step: it must be confirmed by the PMLA Adjudicating Authority. These are allegations, not findings of guilt; the accused are presumed innocent until proven guilty in court, and due process continues. The ED said further investigation is in progress.
This report describes enforcement actions and allegations on the public record, attributed to the officials cited. An order, FIR or chargesheet is not a conviction; parties are presumed innocent until proven guilty.
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Sources & Citations
- Enforcement Directorate press release — Enforcement Directorate