Tag: PMLA

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ED Seizes ₹270 Crore in Assets from Ex-Lodha Director Rajendra

NEW DELHI: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) announced on Monday the attachment of land parcels and other immovable assets exceeding Rs 270 crore as part of its money laundering probe against Rajendra Lodha, former director of Lodha Developers, a realty firm based in Maharashtra. A provisional order was issued on March 26 under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), which values the properties at Rs 271.48 crore, according to the ED’s statement. The attached assets include lands situated in the Panvel and Shahapur talukas of Maharashtra. Lodha was arrested by the ED in February and is currently in judicial custody.…

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Bombay HC: Banks Can’t Claim Priority on PMLA-Attached Properties

NAGPUR: The Nagpur bench of the Bombay High Court has delivered a landmark ruling affecting financial institutions and the Enforcement Directorate (ED). The court determined that banks’ recovery laws cannot supersede the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), highlighting the government’s priority action against ‘proceeds of crime’. A division bench consisting of Justices Mukulika Jawalkar and Nandesh Deshpande annulled an order from the appellate tribunal that permitted banks, including HDFC Bank and Punjab National Bank, to enforce secured interests over properties seized by the ED in a money laundering case involving alleged misconduct in coal block allocation. The court declared…

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ED Seizes ₹14 Crore in Sai Surya Developers Fraud Case

HYDERABAD: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) in Hyderabad has provisionally attached assets worth ₹14 crore under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act. This action is part of an investigation into Sai Surya Developers and others, who are accused of defrauding numerous depositors by falsely claiming to sell plots in various real estate projects. The assets seized include land owned by Sai Surya Developers. The ED commenced its investigation based on multiple FIRs filed by the Telangana police against Sathish Chandra Gupta, the proprietor of Sai Surya Developers, among others. According to the police’s chargesheet, Gupta allegedly received payments from several victims…

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Ex-Lodha Developer Director in ED Custody Until Feb 20

MUMBAI: On Friday, a special PMLA court in Mumbai remanded Rajendra Lodha, a former director of Lodha Developers Ltd, into Enforcement Directorate (ED) custody until February 20, in connection with a money laundering case involving ₹85 crore. The ED’s case is founded on allegations of cheating and forgery, as detailed in a FIR filed by the Mumbai police’s crime branch under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS). Rajendra Lodha was arrested by the crime branch in September of last year and has since been held in judicial custody. The ED officially took him into custody on Thursday for the money laundering…

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Hyderabad: ED Files Supplementary Complaint in Sahiti Case

HYDERABAD: The Hyderabad unit of the Enforcement Directorate (ED) has submitted a supplementary prosecution complaint under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) against key figures involved in the Sahiti Infratec Ventures India Pvt Ltd (SIVIPL) fraud case. This complaint has been presented to the MSJ Court in Nampally, which acknowledged it on Monday. According to the ED, the complaint targets B Lakshminarayana, a former director, and S Purnachandra Rao, the marketing head of SIVIPL. Following an FIR filed by the Telangana police, the ED initiated a money-laundering investigation. The FIR claimed that SIVIPL and its promoters promoted a ‘pre-launch…

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ED Arrests MD of Jayathri Infrastructures in Fraud Case

HYDERABAD: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has apprehended Kakarla Srinivas, Managing Director of Jayathri Infrastructures India Pvt Ltd in Hyderabad. He is a key suspect in a multi-crore real estate pre-launch scam that reportedly defrauded numerous homebuyers. Srinivas, who had been evading arrest for several months, was captured by the ED’s Hyderabad unit in Chennai on Thursday evening. He was presented before the special PMLA court in Rangareddy on Friday and was remanded in judicial custody until December 31. The case revolves around alleged money laundering associated with extensive cheating of homebuyers and investors. The ED initiated an investigation under the…

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ED, IBBI Set New Standards for Restoring Assets to Cheated Homebuyers

NEW DELHI: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) announced that the assets of bankrupt companies and their promoters, which were previously attached under anti-money laundering laws, will now be returned to affected parties like banks or homebuyers. This follows the establishment of a new standard operating procedure, as stated by the federal probe agency on Wednesday. The Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board of India (IBBI) issued a circular on November 4 after extensive coordination meetings with ED officials. The coordinated efforts resulted in a “standard undertaking” to be submitted by Insolvency Professionals (IPs) to the special PMLA court for releasing ED-attached assets for…

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ED seizes ₹186 crore in bank fraud case involving DHFL

NEW DELHI: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has provisionally attached assets worth approximately Rs 186 crore under the anti-money laundering law related to a bank loan fraud case against Dewan Housing Finance Corporation Ltd (DHFL) and its promoters. The attached assets, under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), include 154 flats and movable assets representing receivables tied to 20 flats in Mumbai, according to an agency statement. The total value of the seized properties stands at Rs 185.84 crore. The order, issued by the Mumbai zonal office of the ED, was dated September 5. The investigation stems from a CBI…

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ED Arrests Ex-Director of Sahiti Infratech in ₹800 Crore Case

HYDERABAD: The Enforcement Directorate’s Hyderabad unit has arrested Sandu Purnachandra Rao, the former director of Sahiti Infratec Ventures India Pvt Ltd (SIVIPL), under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) for allegedly defrauding homebuyers of crores of rupees. Rao was taken into custody on Monday and presented before a special PMLA court in Nampally on Tuesday, where he was remanded to 15 days of judicial custody. Sahiti Infra is charged with defrauding homebuyers of approximately ₹360 crore. The ED initiated its investigation following an FIR filed by Telangana Police against SIVIPL, its managing director B. Lakshminarayan, and others, highlighting a…

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ED: Ex-Vasai-Virar Chief and Co-Accused Committed Major Fraud

MUMBAI: Former Vasai-Virar civic chief Anil Pawar, along with three others, has been implicated in a money laundering case involving a “deliberate” abuse of administrative authority and the financial system to facilitate an extensive fraud, according to the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in a Mumbai court on Wednesday. The ED revealed that “hawala and angadia” channels were utilized to launder illicit proceeds not just within Maharashtra but also in other states. Following this, the special court, which included two real estate developers among the accused, placed all four individuals in custody one week post-arrest. The hawala system is an informal method…