SHAKEELA ANDRABI
SRINAGAR: Separatist-turned-mainstream politician and People’s Conference Chairman Sajad Gani Lone has disclosed assets worth around Rs 12 crore and also mentioned a dispute spanning 30 years with the Minerals and Metals Trading Corporation in his election affidavit.
Sajad Lone, who joined mainstream politics and revived his father Abdul Gani Lone’s People’s Conference, has liability to the tune of Rs 6.9 crore, showed the affidavit, filed by the 57-year-old as part of his nomination papers to contest the Lok Sabha polls from Baramulla constituency on May 20.
Sajjad Gani Lone is contesting against National Conference Vice President Omar Abdullah from Baramulla Lok Sabha seat. The poll affidavit revealed that the Crorepati leader was living a luxurious life in UK during the turmoil in Kashmir in the 90’s, when thousands of school children from poor and middle class families lost their parents, future, education and mental balance as miscreants set hundreds of schools ,bridges and government building on fire in the valley . The indefinite Hartals and curfews had also put people in a blind tunnel.
The movable assets of Sajad Lone’s wife Asma Khan are worth Rs 54.80 lakh, according to the affidavit. Asma Khan is daughter of late Amanullah Khan, founder leader of outlawed Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front (JKLF).
The wealth of his sons M Emmad Lone and M Adnan Lone, who are his partners in a commercial venture in Srinagar, is also in crores of rupees, the document showed.
Sajad Lone, a former minister in the previous PDP-led government, has also listed in the affidavit the disputed amount under arbitration with the Minerals and Metals Trading Corporation (MMTC), which dates back to his participation in the “Gold for Gold” scheme in the early 1990s.
The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and the Enforcement Directorate (ED) had registered a case in 1995 after which the MMTC began arbitration proceedings in 2001 against a firm of Sajad Lone and two of his associates in another company for the recovery of a loan in gold given for making ornaments for export.
Sajad Lone had allegedly taken gold from the MMTC under its “Gold for Gold” scheme in 1993-94. Under the scheme, parties registered within Customs-bound areas took gold from the MMTC and converted it into ornaments for export.
The parties that availed the loans were supposed to return the principal amount in gold to the corporation while the interest was payable in cash.
The MMTC had alleged that Sajad Lone left the country immediately after availing the loan, following which the corporation registered a complaint with the CBI in 1994 and the ED in 1995.
In his 2014 poll affidavit, Sajad Lone had put the value of movable assets of his wife at Rs 24.5 lakh and his two dependents (sons) at Rs 14,668 and Rs 8,996, respectively, with value of immovable assets, including a flat in Haryana, besides other properties worth Rs 6.5 crore each.
A graduate from the University of Wales, College of Cardiff, UK, Sajad Lone in his latest affidavit showed that his annual income, according to the Income Tax Returns, grew from more than Rs 37 lakh in 2018-19 to Rs 81.79 lakh in 2022-23.
The stark contrast in his financial position since the 2014 elections has been attributed to rental and business earnings, along with pension from his time as a former MLA.
Sajad Lone’s financial portfolio includes a luxury car, multiple bank accounts and substantial investments in properties such as a commercial building in Srinagar and a residential building in Handwara. His total immovable assets, including those jointly owned with his dependents, amount to around Rs 11.20 crore.