ED attaches aircraft, properties linked to Anil Ambani; seizures cross Rs 23,100 crore
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has attached several movable and immovable assets linked to industrialist Anil Ambani and companies belonging to his Reliance Group in connection with multiple bank fraud investigations.
The latest action covers cases involving Reliance Home Finance Limited (RHFL), Reliance Commercial Finance Limited (RCFL) and Reliance Communications Limited (RCom).
According to the agency, the attached assets include two chartered aircraft, six land parcels, office premises in Maharashtra, bank deposits, fixed deposits, receivables and investments.
With the latest attachments, the total value of assets seized or attached in connection with the Reliance Anil Ambani Group under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) and Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA) has reached Rs 23,100 crore.
What assets has the ED attached?
In a statement, the ED said it had attached two chartered aircraft, six land parcels and an office premises in Maharashtra.
In the RHFL and RCFL bank fraud cases, the agency also attached two windmills located in Tamil Nadu, along with bank deposits and other financial assets.
The ED said assets worth Rs 263.05 crore had been attached in the Reliance Home Finance and Reliance Commercial Finance bank fraud investigations.
In the Reliance Communications bank fraud case, assets valued at Rs 247.12 crore have been attached.
Multiple Reliance Group companies under scanner
The ED's investigation was initiated following several cases registered by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in Delhi, the Economic Offences Wing (EOW) of Delhi Police and the EOW of Mumbai Police.
Apart from RHFL, RCFL and RCom, companies under investigation include Reliance Infrastructure Limited, Reliance Power Limited and Reliance Capital Limited.
The agency has also investigated two cases under FEMA.
ED alleges diversion of public funds
The ED has accused the Reliance Anil Ambani Group of siphoning off public funds from banks and financial institutions, diverting money to offshore tax havens and misusing the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC) to allegedly ring-fence corporate assets for personal use.
In its statement, the agency alleged that a substantial portion of the funds was used for the individual benefit of the promoters and their family members.
So far, 10 people have been arrested in connection with the investigations. The agency has also filed six complaints under the PMLA and one complaint under FEMA.
CBI's Rs 1,816 crore case against Reliance Capital
The latest ED action comes amid several other investigations involving Anil Ambani and Reliance Group companies.
In August, the CBI registered an FIR against Reliance Capital Limited and its former chairman Anil Ambani over alleged fraud involving investments linked to the Employees' Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO).
The case concerns an alleged loss of Rs 1,816.22 crore to the provident fund body.
Ambani has denied any wrongdoing in the matter.
In a statement issued earlier, his spokesperson clarified that the FIR related to Reliance Capital Limited and pointed out that Ambani had served as a non-executive director and chairman of the company's board from 2005 until November 2021.
The spokesperson said the Reserve Bank of India had superseded the company's board in November 2021 and appointed an administrator.
"Anil Ambani denies any wrongdoing whatsoever, and reserves all rights available to him in law," the statement said.
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