ED Attaches ₹3,034 Cr Assets Of RCOM, RInfra As Anil Ambani Money Laundering Probe Widens

In fresh trouble for Anil Ambani, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) has attached Rs 3,034 crore assets of Reliance Group of Companies. The economic intelligence agency attached assets linked to RCOM, and RInfra, including a Mumbai flat, a farmhouse in Khandala and Rs 7.71 crore shares of R-Infra. 

Notably, the agency noted that the total asset attached now surpasses the Rs 19,344 crore mark.

In a recent statement, Enforcement Directorate noted, “ED attaches assets valued at Rs 3034.90 Crore in the M/s Reliance Communications Ltd. Bank Fraud case – bringing the total attachment in Reliance Anil Ambani Group cases to over Rs 19,344 Crore. The SIT constituted on the directions of the Hon’ble Supreme Court is investigating the Reliance Anil Ambani Group (“RAAG”) cases involving diversion and laundering of bank/public funds.”

"ED has provisionally attached assets valued at Rs. 3034.90 Crore under section 5 of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002 in the M/s Reliance Communications Ltd. (“RCOM”) bank fraud case. The provisional attachment under PMLA has been made to prevent dissipation of assets and to protect the interests of banks and the public. Investigation was initiated based on multiple CBI FIRs registered on the complaints of State Bank of India, Punjab National Bank, Bank of Baroda, and Life Insurance Corporation of India, against RCOM, Anil D. Ambani, and others. RCOM and its group companies availed loans from domestic and foreign lenders of which a total amount of Rs. 40,185 Crore is outstanding," it said.

Further, ED noted that the investigation revealed assets of the Promoter Group such as a flat in the Usha Kiran Building, Mumbai, a farmhouse in Khandala, Pune, and a land parcel in Sanand, Ahmedabad.

Besides the above, 7.71 Crore shares of Reliance Infrastructure Ltd., held by M/s Risee Infinity Pvt. Ltd. – a group entity of Anil Ambani under the RiseE Trust umbrella, which is a Private Family Trust of the members of Anil Ambani’s family – were also attached.

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"The RiseE Trust was set up to ensure wealth preservation and resource generation by aggregation of properties in RiseE Trust and shield it from the personal liabilities of Anil Ambani in the form of Personal Guarantees extended by him to lender banks against the loans sanctioned to RCOM. The properties were intended to be beneficially used and owned by the Anil Ambani family and not for the distressed public banks whose loans turned NPA," ED said.

"Under Section 8 of PMLA, confiscated property would be restored to legitimate claimants who suffered loss, including victim banks. Thus, the attachment preserves value so that, after due legal process, public money can be recovered and restored to banks and ultimately the general public, in accordance with law," it added.