THE JHARKHAND STORY DESK
New Delhi, June 20: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) carried out searches at 35 locations in Delhi-NCR and Maharashtra targeting the Amtek Group on Thursday.
This action is part of an investigation into a bank fraud case involving over Rs 20,000 crores across several listed companies. These companies were ultimately acquired at a nominal price in NCLT proceedings, resulting in minimal recovery for the consortium of banks.
These raids target the Amtek Group, led by Arvind Dham, Gautam Malhotra, and others.
The ED’s Zonal office in Gurugram is carrying out raids in Delhi, Gurugram, Noida, Mumbai, and Nagpur under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).
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Rs 10-15k crore loss to exchequer, funds diverted, assets concealed
The ED stated that the alleged fraud resulted in a significant loss to the exchequer, amounting to approximately Rs 10-15k crores.
Based on a First Information Report (FIR) from the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) at one of the group companies, ACIL Limited, and in response to orders from the Supreme Court to look into the fraud, the ED investigation got underway.
Furthermore, the ED reported that its investigation uncovered that loan funds were diverted to investments in real estate, foreign ventures, and new business ventures.
According to the agency, the group entities fabricated sales, capital assets, debtors, and profits to secure additional loans and avoid being classified as non-performing assets (NPA).
The ED alleged that shares of listed companies were manipulated, with assets worth thousands of crores being hidden under the names of shell companies. Additionally, some foreign assets were created, and funds are still concealed under new identities.
