Dehradun: Former Uttarakhand chief minister and Congress leader Harish Rawat on Saturday expressed his desire to step down as member of the state Congress Working Committee and the All India Congress Committee (AICC) Working Committee following an Enforcement Directorate (ED) raid on the residence of his aide, Chandan Singh Jeena.The ED conducted searches at Jeena’s residence in Dehradun on Thursday in connection with alleged irregularities in the Uttarakhand Subordinate Service Selection Commission’s (UKSSSC’s) Gram Panchayat Vikas Adhikari examination in 2016. Jeena is Rawat’s personal assistant and had served as his officer on special duty (OSD) between 2014 and 2017.Speaking to TOI, Rawat clarified that he has neither resigned from the party posts nor was he quitting the party. “Membership of the Congress is in my blood and bones. Whatever I am has been shaped by the party, and I will carry that identity with me till my last breath,” he said.Rawat said he was “considering resigning from the two party posts as a moral responsibility” since the allegations levelled were during his tenure as chief minister. “Such decisions are not taken in haste. Several factors, including party preparations, have to be considered,” he said.He maintained that though Jeena was his OSD, “he was not in a position to influence recruitment examinations”. “Only the chief minister, chief secretary or secretary (personnel) can take a call on recruitment examinations,” the former CM said.In a post on Facebook, Rawat said the ED action at the residence of one of his associates appeared aimed at creating a political narrative ahead of the Uttarakhand elections. He said he was ready to appear before the CBI, ED or income-tax authorities wherever required and respond to any allegations.“Whenever anyone asked me when the election was being held, I would joke that it would be held when the CBI came knocking at my door. If it has not come yet, it means the polls will be held only in March-April next year. But this time, by knocking at the house of one of my associates, an attempt has been made to create a narrative,” he said.Rawat also said that if there had been any lapse in the recruitment process during his tenure, he was willing to accept responsibility. He claimed that more than 42,000 govt posts had been filled during his govt’s three-year tenure and appealed to anyone with evidence of his involvement in irregularities to submit it to the investigating agencies or state police.The ED in its official communication said its searches on Thursday were conducted under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act in connection with alleged irregularities in the UKSSSC’s 2016 Gram Panchayat Vikas Adhikari examination. “The case stems from an FIR registered at the Dehradun vigilance police station and three subsequent FIRs,” it said.According to the agency, Rs 32 lakh in cash, gold coins, 13 gold chains and 12 luxury watches, including Rolex, Rado and Piaget, were recovered during the searches. “Bank accounts belonging to Jeena and his family members, containing a total balance of Rs 52.16 lakh, were also frozen,” the ED stated in a statement.The agency put the total value of the assets seized and frozen at around Rs 1.2 crore. It said Jeena’s mobile phone had been seized for forensic examination and that the value of 12 watches was yet to be assessed.