ED’s Rajeshwar Singh Speculated to Resign, May Join BJP Ahead of UP Polls

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) Joint Director Rajeshwar Singh is likely to resign soon or seek VRS, according to top sources. The officer is speculated to join BJP in the coming days to contest the UP Assembly Elections in 2022. Singh, hailing from Uttar Pradesh’s Sultanpur district, is an officer of the UP cadre.

A provincial police service officer (PPS), Singh was posted to the ED on deputation in 2009. During his posting in ED, he was involved in high profile investigations like the 2G spectrum allocation scam, Aircel-Maxis deal, Commonwealth Games scam, malpractices in coal block allocation, and irregularities in the AgustaWestland helicopter deal.

He has also been associated with investigating corruption allegations against former Union Minister P Chidambaram and his son Karti Chidambaram. The official has been involved in investigations related to former Haryana Chief Minister Om Prakash Chautala, Madhu Koda and Jagan Mohan Reddy. He became an ED cadre officer in 2014 after a Supreme Court verdict.

The CO of the Mahanagar area of Lucknow, Singh is also known as an encounter specialist. A graduate in mining engineering from Dhanbad, he also holds a law and human rights degree. The officer still has 14 years of job tenure left, making the decision to leave his position ‘very important’ and triggering speculations about him joining politics.

In 2018, the government had also started an investigation against Singh. However, no irregularities were reported to be found. Singh’s wife Laxmi Singh, is the IG Range of Lucknow. They have a daughter who studies in class five. Agra’s ADG Rajiv Krishna is also a close relative of Rajeshwar Singh.