Enforcement Directorate officer Rajeshwar Singh, who had helmed probes into UPA-era scam cases, has applied for retirement from government service and is expected to join the BJP and contest the 2022 Uttar Pradesh Assembly polls, official sources said on Friday.

Singh had headed high-profile investigations such as the 2G spectrum allocation case, the 2010 Commonwealth Games irregularities and the money-laundering probes against former Union finance minister P. Chidambaram and his son Karti, Andhra Pradesh chief minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy and former Jharkhand chief minister Madhu Koda.

He also headed the headquarters investigation unit of the ED located in the national capital that probes sensitive money-laundering and foreign exchange violation cases, including those with political links.

Singh is currently posted as the joint director of the ED at its zonal office in Lucknow. Singh joined the agency in 2009. Singh, who hails from Sultanpur in Uttar Pradesh, was permanently absorbed into the ED cadre in 2015.

Sources said Singh had applied for retirement from government service. They said there were chances of him joining the BJP in Uttar Pradesh and contesting the Assembly polls .The application is yet to be accepted, they added.

His sister Abha Singh, a lawyer based in Mumbai, posted a message on Twitter with a photograph of her and Singh: “Congratulations to my brother #RajeshwarSingh of the #ED for opting for early retirement to serve the country. Nation needs you.”