The illegal system enabled the operators to generate fake toll receipts while concealing the actual collections from the official system of the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI), according to the ED.
Fraudulent Toll Collection Investigation Unfolds in Mirzapur
Authorities conducted searches in Mirzapur district under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002, linked to FIR No. 0017 registered on January 22, 2025, at the Lalganj police station.
This investigation was prompted by the discovery of fraudulent toll collection activities at the Atraila Shiv Gulam Toll Plaza in January 2025, as identified by the Uttar Pradesh Police.
LUCKNOW: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) conducted search operations at 14 premises across Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, West Bengal and the Delhi-NCR region on September 2 in connection with a money laundering investigation into a large-scale fraudulent toll collection racket operating at the Atraila Toll Plaza in Mirzapur and several other toll plazas across the country. During Wednesday’s searches, the ED seized approximately Rs 1.03 crore in cash from the premises searched. The ED investigation has revealed that unauthorised applications named ‘Mobdata’ and ‘Any’ were developed and deployed to facilitate toll collection from non-FASTag vehicles. Digital records accessed during the investigation have revealed unauthorised toll receipts involving amounts running into crores of rupees, indicating the potentially extensive scale of the operation.
The investigation also found that dedicated portals were being maintained to monitor and manage such unauthorised collections. The investigation has also pointed towards the involvement of intermediaries and toll collection entities entrusted with toll operations by NHAI. The ED has identified a wider network of toll plazas, individuals and entities whose roles are now being examined as part of the investigation. The agency also froze eight bank lockers as part of its investigation into the financial trail associated with the suspected illegal toll collections.