Synopsis
The Enforcement Directorate detained Ashish Bhalla, promoter of WTC Group, on March 7, 2023, under the PMLA amidst allegations of extensive real estate fraud affecting thousands of investors.Key Takeaways
- Ashish Bhalla arrested under PMLA
- Investigations reveal fund collections exceeding Rs 3,500 crore
- Over 20,000 buyers affected by incomplete projects
- Multiple FIRs filed against WTC Group
- Bhutani Group denies involvement with WTC Group
New Delhi, March 7 (NationPress) The Enforcement Directorate (ED) apprehended WTC Group head Ashish Bhalla on Friday under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002.
This arrest occurred just days following multiple searches conducted on the real estate conglomerate nationwide, linked to an alleged property fraud. Bhalla faces accusations of deceiving and defrauding thousands of investors and businesses.
The ED executed search operations under Section 17 of PMLA on February 27, targeting 12 locations in Delhi, Faridabad, and the NCR region.
Bhalla had been evading capture since that date in a bid to escape legal consequences.
The ED's operations against the WTC Group, in conjunction with the Bhutani Group, uncovered extensive financial discrepancies, revealing a blatant breach of trust and fraud against numerous homebuyers by the implicated companies and their affiliates.
Documents detailing fund collections exceeding Rs 3,500 crore from various investors were uncovered, relating to 15 projects within the Delhi/NCR area.
Further, incriminating materials concerning the WTC Group and the Bhutani Group were seized, indicating that assets valued in the thousands of crores had been transferred to the Bhutani Group at nominal costs, effectively moving the Proceeds of Crime (POC) at minimal prices. Documentation regarding cash transactions of the Group was also discovered.
This fraud has left over 20,000 buyers in distress due to incomplete developments and financial losses amounting to several thousands of crores.
The investigation was launched following numerous FIRs filed by the Delhi Police’s Economic Offences Wing (EOW), PS BPTP Faridabad, and PS Faridabad Central, based on complaints from hundreds of homebuyers and investors against the WTC Group and its promoters for allegations of cheating, criminal breach of trust, and fraud.
The FIRs claimed that the WTC Faridabad Infrastructure Private Limited and its promoters had enticed the public and plot buyers to invest in their project located in Sector 111-114, Faridabad for the allocation of residential plots.
The Bhutani Group had entered into an agreement in July 2024 to acquire a majority stake in the WTC Group.
However, Bhutani Infra has explicitly denied any involvement in land or fund transfers concerning the controversial real estate firm, asserting that it has severed all associations with the WTC Group.
