ED grills Anil Ambani in loan fraud case

Reliance Group Chairman Anil Ambani on Tuesday appeared before the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in connection with bank loan fraud cases pegged at over Rs 17,000 crore and involving several of his group’s companies.

The 66-year-old industrialist was not allowed to have a lawyer present with him during the in-camera questioning, which went on for nearly 10 hours, recorded under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).

“During the examination, various questions pertaining to loan transactions were put to him. Mr Ambani sought a period of seven days to furnish the requisite details and supporting documents,” a senior ED officer told The Tribune.

Earlier on July 24, the agency had carried out a large search operation spanning over 50 companies and more than 25 individuals connected to the case.

According to a senior probe agency official, the money laundering probe stems from FIRs earlier registered by the CBI and also information shared by other institutions like National Housing Bank, SEBI, National Financial Reporting Authority (NFRA), and Bank of Baroda.

According to ED, the investigation has uncovered a well-planned scheme involving illegal diversion of public money through fraudulent means, allegedly involving cheating of banks, shareholders, investors and other financial institutions.

Preliminary findings suggest that loans amounting to approximately Rs 3,000 crore were illegally diverted from Yes Bank between 2017 and 2019. The ED has found that just before these loans were sanctioned, entities linked to Yes Bank promoters received significant financial transfers, raising concerns of a quid pro quo arrangement.