Is Trouble Escalating for Anil Ambani Amid ED's Crackdown?
Synopsis
Key Takeaways
- ED's crackdown on ADAG has intensified.
- Properties worth Rs 1,400 crore have been seized.
- Total assets under investigation have reached Rs 9,000 crore.
- Anil Ambani has missed summons for questioning.
- Investigation focuses on financial misconduct and money laundering.
Mumbai, Nov 20 (NationPress) The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has ramped up its actions against entities associated with the Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group (ADAG), confiscating immovable properties valued at Rs 1,400 crore under a new provisional attachment order.
With this recent development, the cumulative worth of assets seized by the agency in this case has soared to approximately Rs 9,000 crore, as per informed sources.
This latest asset seizure arrives amidst the ED’s increasing scrutiny of the ADAG conglomerate.
On November 17, Reliance ADAG Chairman Anil Ambani failed to respond to the agency’s summons for the second occasion in a FEMA investigation related to the Jaipur–Reengus highway project.
Previously, he had also avoided questioning on Friday after the ED turned down his request for a virtual appearance.
On Monday, Ambani again requested to participate in the investigation virtually; however, the agency insisted on a personal appearance.
As per investigators, the FEMA inquiry began following claims that around Rs 40 crore from the 2010 highway project awarded to Reliance Infra was diverted abroad through shell companies based in Surat and funneled to Dubai.
The ED suspects this financial trail is connected to a broader hawala network estimated to be worth over Rs 600 crore.
A spokesperson for the Reliance Group recently stated that Anil Ambani is eager to cooperate and is prepared to provide his statement “at any date and time convenient for the ED” either through a virtual or recorded video appearance.
This marks not the first instance of Ambani being scrutinized by the agency. In August, he was interrogated for nearly nine hours at the ED headquarters regarding an alleged Rs 17,000-crore bank loan fraud case.
The ED’s crackdown on ADAG companies has broadened in recent months. Just last week, the agency provisionally attached over 132 acres of land valued at Rs 4,462.81 crore at Dhirubhai Ambani Knowledge City in Navi Mumbai under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act.
Previously, it had attached 42 properties worth more than Rs 3,083 crore connected to bank fraud investigations involving Reliance Communications, Reliance Commercial Finance, and Reliance Home Finance.