RANCHI: A corruption inquiry in Jharkhand has taken an unusual turn as investigators examine whether foreign trips taken by the family of suspended IAS officer Vinay Choubey were funded through indirect payment channels designed to disguise the true source of the money. Documents, bank accounts, and travel records now form the basis of a widening probe into whether relatives were used as intermediaries to obscure unexplained wealth.
ACB Probes Foreign Trips as Possible Mask for Unexplained Income
When Jharkhand’s Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) opened an inquiry into allegations that IAS officer Vinay Choubey had amassed assets beyond his known income, investigators expected the familiar trail of property purchases and bank deposits. Instead, they found themselves reconstructing a string of foreign trips taken by Choubey’s family members over an eight-year span journeys whose funding, officials say, raises more questions than answers.
According to officials briefed on the inquiry, the family made 10 international trips between 2017 and 2024, visiting destinations including the United States, Britain, Denmark, Thailand, Austria and Italy. The expenses for several of these trips, investigators found, were reportedly borne not by Choubey or his immediate family, but by a relative his sister-in-law, Shikha.
The payments appeared to follow what investigators describe as an “Indirect Payment System,” a method in which expenses are routed through a third party to obscure the original payer. The ACB is now examining whether this mechanism was used to legitimize spending that could not be explained by Choubey’s official income.
A Web of Payments Routed Through Relatives
Investigators say the pattern of expenditure is atypical for a serving senior official. The cost of airline tickets alone for trips to these countries generally ranges from ₹10–15 lakh, not including hotels, food, transport, or leisure activities. The cumulative cost of the family’s travel runs into crores of rupees, according to preliminary estimates.
What struck investigators as unusual was the role of Shikha, identified as the sister of Choubey’s wife, Swapna Sanchita. Evidence reviewed so far suggests she financed trips undertaken by her sister and brother-in-law, a financial burden that officials describe as “extraordinary and suspicious.”
The ACB believes that using a close relative to pay for foreign travel may have served as a way to hide the true financial source of these expenses. Officials are reviewing whether large transfers, ticket purchases, or mutual transactions between family members indicate laundering or income concealment.
Documents, Bank Flows and Travel Trails Under Scrutiny
To establish the origin of funds, investigators have begun a detailed review of bank statements, ticket purchases, hotel bookings, and intra-family financial exchanges. Authorities say they are attempting to determine whether the expenditures align with Shikha’s own financial capacity or whether she acted as a channel to legitimize someone else’s money.
The review also seeks to identify whether any commercial or personal advantages accrued to Choubey or his relatives following the trips an assessment meant to determine whether the travel served any quid pro quo or business purpose.
Officials involved in the investigation describe the process as painstaking, requiring the reconstruction of financial links across years, multiple accounts, and international transactions. The probe remains in its early stages but has expanded beyond asset evaluation into the financial behavior of the wider family network.
Questions of Illicit Income and Attempted Legitimization
Preliminary findings suggest that the payments may have been used to portray Choubey’s foreign travel as funded legitimately by relatives an explanation investigators say does not align with normal financial practices. Authorities believe this may reflect an attempt to justify expenses connected to “black income” earned through undisclosed channels.
Under anti-corruption law, using relatives to mask the source of funds spent on luxury travel can constitute a financial offense. The ACB, officials say, regards this as a possible tactic to camouflage assets acquired illegally or beyond known income limits.
