Enforcement Directorate Raids Indiabulls Finance Offices In Mumbai, Delhi

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Monday raided the premises of Indiabulls Finance Centre in Delhi and Mumbai. This is in connection with money laundering allegations made against the firm and promoter Sameer Gehlot in April 2021.

Last year, a case was lodged against the company and its promoter at Palghar, Maharashtra, where it was alleged that the company siphoned off money invested in its own shares to boost prices.

The ED search is on the basis of an Enforcement Case Information Report (ECIR) registered by the ED. It was under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002 (PMLA) against the company and its promoter.

News agencies reported that the ED had earlier recorded the statement of a Pune-based businessman, who deals in real estate, in this connection. According to agency reports, ED officials held a meeting on Sunday to plan Monday’s raid. Separate teams were formed to recover a few incriminating documents.

In a statement to the exchanges, Indiabulls Housing Finance said ED had sought certain clarifications regarding the FIR.

“We wish to inform that the Enforcement Directorate sought some information regarding certain clients and the matter originates from ECIR No. 07/HUI/2021 filed by ED on the basis of an FIR lodged in village Wada, Palghar, Maharashtra in April, 2021. The company and its officials have provided the data of clients to the Enforcement Directorate,” the statement said.

The company further said the ECIR, registered by ED, stems from an FIR filed by one Ashutosh Kamble, who is part of the long-running extortion and blackmail racket against the company.

“The FIR is a copy-and-paste of several patently false, vexatious and malicious complaints that the blackmailers have been circulating for the last three years now. A similar allegation petition under the name of Abhay Yadav was dismissed by the Supreme Court in 2019,” it said.

Indiabulls said the company had immediately approached the high court of Bombay seeking quashing of the false & malicious FIR filed against the company in village Palghar last year.

“The Division Bench of Bombay High Court, on April 27, 2021, passed a detailed order staying all investigations in the matter,” the company said.

“These admitted facts prima facie raise a suspicion about the bonafides and it appears that he (complainant) has been set up to initiate criminal proceedings in the matter. This is accentuated by the admitted position that he (complainant), for the first time, executed a leave and licence agreement about a room at Palghar on 26-3-21, and on that very day, approached the police with grievances…to foist the jurisdiction at Wada…”

“… we prima facie are of the opinion that the complaint filed by respondent no. 2 (the complainant) appears to be malafide and deficient …” the statement from Indiabulls said, quoting the Bombay High Court order.

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