The Aryavarth Express
Agency(New Delhi): The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has taken decisive action against SGS Group by attaching immovable properties valued at Rs 13.20 crore. This move is part of an ongoing investigation into an alleged bank loan fraud amounting to Rs 6,117.93 crore. The attached assets include shops located in SGS Mall Pune, owned by the SGS Group. These actions were taken under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002 (PMLA).
The case revolves around a substantial bank loan fraud, estimated at Rs 6,117.93 crore, involving the Punjab and Maharashtra Co-operative Bank (PMC) and Housing Development and Infrastructure Pvt Ltd (HDIL), along with its promoters and various other accused. The ED initiated this probe following a First Information Report (FIR) filed by PMC against several individuals, including Joy Thomas and Waryam Singh, directors of PMC Bank, and Rakesh Kumar Wadhawan and Sarang Wadhawan.
The ED’s investigation uncovered that HDIL and its affiliated companies had repeatedly defaulted on payments yet continued to receive enhanced Overdraft (OD) limits from PMC Bank to avoid NPA classification. The probe also revealed that Rakesh Wadhawan and his son Sarang Wadhawan, serving as the main directors and promoters of HDIL, were responsible for operating all bank accounts of the company and its subsidiaries. They were found to have layered the proceeds of the crime through these accounts and diverted funds into their personal accounts and those of close associates to acquire assets.
Further scrutiny of HDIL Group’s bank accounts showed that the company had siphoned off funds, keeping PMC Bank uninformed, and subsequently parked these funds with SGS Group to present them as legitimate.
Rakesh Kumar Wadhawan and his son Sarang Wadhawan, the primary accused in this case, were arrested on October 17, 2019, and are currently under judicial custody. Following this latest attachment, the ED has now identified and attached assets totaling Rs 675.27 crore under the PMLA. Additionally, a prosecution complaint and two supplementary complaints have been filed against the Wadhawans, along with 36 other individuals and entities.
