Bowling a “political googly” at the SAD and the BJP amid reports of their possible re-alliance, the AAP government-led Punjab Vigilance Bureau has written to the Enforcement Directorate (ED), seeking the registration of a case and a probe into a Rs 736.96-crore money laundering case involving Akali leader and former minister Bikram Singh Majithia.Political observers say the move is a political googly because the two agencies sit on opposite sides of the political divide. The Vigilance Bureau reports to the AAP government in Punjab, while the ED functions under the BJP-led Union Government.By handing over its findings to the ED, the AAP government has effectively put the onus on the central agency to act against a senior SAD leader at a time when the BJP is reportedly exploring a re-alliance with the party.Majithia has already denied the allegations, claiming these will not stand trial in a court.The ED has, over the past few years, registered cases against several AAP leaders, including former Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, former Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia, Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh and former Punjab Finance Minister Sanjeev Arora.Arora has remained in judicial custody for several months following his arrest in a money laundering case. Against this backdrop, the Punjab Vigilance Bureau’s decision to ask the ED to probe a senior Akali leader is being viewed as a politically significant test of whether the central agency will act on the state’s findings with the same urgency.According to a Vigilance spokesperson, the bureau’s investigation points to an extensive financial network allegedly used to generate, route, layer and conceal unaccounted wealth through family members, close associates, multiple companies and foreign entities.The Vigilance has written to the ED that it has named Majithia as the mastermind and primary beneficiary of the network. The probe into the alleged drug money trail, including money said to have been generated through drug sales, has brought Rs 736.96 crore in alleged proceeds of crime under scrutiny.The investigation points to a three-stage process of generation, layering and integration. Transactions have been traced through domestic companies and foreign entities in Cyprus and Singapore, the spokesperson said.The funds were allegedly converted into properties, aircraft, investments and other assets held in the names of family members and associates, while Majithia remained the primary beneficiary, according to the investigation.The Vigilance Bureau had now approached the ED for further investigation into the money laundering aspects of the case, the spokesperson said. The findings place the focus on the Rs 736.96-crore financial trail and the network of transactions, companies and individuals allegedly used to route and conceal the wealth.