The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Wednesday conducted raids at the Jalandhar house of Ashok Kumar Mittal, AAP Rajya Sabha MP and Lovely Professional University (LPU) founder-chancellor, along with premises linked to the university.

According to sources, the action is linked to a suspected money laundering probe involving Mittal, a prominent educationist-turned-politician who recently replaced Raghav Chadha as AAP’s Deputy Leader in Rajya Sabha, and his son. Searches were also conducted at properties associated with his family members, including his brothers.

Details of the case have not been officially disclosed yet, and further updates are awaited as the raids continue.

ED teams reached Mittal’s residence in Jalandhar early in the morning and simultaneously carried out searches at nine locations, including premises linked to the Lovely Group, sources said. These included the Lovely Professional University (LPU), as well as businesses such as Lovely Autos, Lovely Sweets, and a distance education centre in Jalandhar and Phagwara. Police personnel were deployed outside key locations as the searches continued through the day.

The development has triggered a major political row in Punjab, with AAP alleging misuse of Central agencies against opposition leaders.

Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann strongly condemned the raids, calling them a “typical Modi-style” political vendetta ahead of the Punjab elections. “BJP has started preparations for Punjab elections… ED raids at AAP Rajya Sabha MP Ashok Mittal’s house and university…typical Modi style..,” he posted on X as he wrote a couplet by a poet, saying the AAP would not get cowed down. “We are not the leaves that will fall off easily,” he said.

AAP national convenor Arvind Kejriwal also criticised the action, accusing the Centre of misusing agencies for political purposes. He said the people of Punjab would give a “befitting reply” to such actions.

Mittal, who entered Parliament in 2022, comes from a business family in Punjab and represents a blend of industry, education, and now politics. Over the past few years, he has gradually expanded his public and political role, emerging as a more vocal figure on national issues and gaining prominence within the party.

Mittal’s new role as Rajya Sabha MP was seen as part of an internal reshuffle aimed at strengthening the party’s strategy in the Upper House by promoting a relatively new but increasingly visible face.

Previous ED raids targeting AAP leaders

ED had raided AAP leaders in Punjab on earlier occasions. The agency had searched Sanjeev Arora’s residence in Ludhiana and other linked premises in October 2024, when he was an AAP Rajya Sabha MP from Punjab, in a money laundering case related to alleged land fraud.

Kulwant Singh (AAP MLA from Mohali) was raided multiple times, including in October 2023 and April 2025, in connection with the massive PACL Ponzi scam.

AAP MLA Jaswant Singh Gajjanmajra was also raided and later arrested in 2023 in a money laundering case linked to a bank fraud. He had faced earlier ED action in 2022 as well.