The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Monday attached over 132 acres of land within the Dhirubhai Ambani Knowledge City (DAKC) in Navi Mumbai, valued at ₹4,462.81 crore, in a significant development in the bank fraud case against Anil Ambani’s Reliance Communications Ltd. With this action, the total value of assets attached in connection with the Reliance Group’s alleged loan frauds has risen to over ₹7,500 crore.
The attachment, made by the Directorate of Enforcement’s Special Task Force, Headquarters, was carried out under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002. It follows an ongoing probe into alleged diversion and misuse of bank loans by Reliance Communications Ltd (RCom) and other Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group (ADAG) companies.
Earlier, the ED had attached 42 properties worth over ₹3,083 crore in cases involving RCom, Reliance Commercial Finance Ltd, and Reliance Home Finance Ltd.
The investigation stems from a CBI FIR filed under Sections 120-B, 406, and 420 of the Indian Penal Code and Section 13(2) read with Section 13(1)(d) of the Prevention of Corruption Act against RCom, Anil Ambani, and others.
Trouble mounts for Anil Ambani-led Reliance
According to ED, RCom and its group companies availed loans from domestic and foreign lenders between 2010 and 2012, amounting to ₹40,185 crore, of which five banks have declared the accounts as fraudulent.
The investigating agency’s probe has revealed that loans taken by one group entity from one bank were allegedly used to repay borrowings of other entities, transferred to related parties, or invested in mutual funds—actions that violated loan sanction conditions.
ED revealed that over ₹13,600 crore was diverted for “evergreening” of loans, ₹12,600 crore was transferred to connected parties, and ₹1,800 crore was parked in fixed deposits and mutual funds before being rerouted to group firms.
It also uncovered extensive misuse of bill discounting facilities and outward remittances abroad to siphon off funds.
With the latest action, the cumulative value of properties attached in the Reliance Group’s bank fraud cases stands at ₹7,545 crore. Moreover, ED said it remains committed to pursuing financial crime perpetrators and recovering the proceeds of crime for rightful claimants.
Yes Bank–Reliance loan link under scanner
The ED’s probe has uncovered that between 2017 and 2019, Yes Bank invested ₹2,965 crore in RHFL and ₹2,045 crore in RCFL. By December 2019, these investments had turned bad, with ₹1,353.50 crore unpaid for RHFL and ₹1,984 crore for RCFL.
Investigators found that funds collected from the public through the former Reliance Nippon Mutual Fund were not supposed to be invested directly in Anil Ambani Group finance companies due to SEBI’s conflict-of-interest rules. To bypass this restriction, the money was allegedly routed indirectly via Yes Bank’s investments, which ultimately reached group firms.
The ED and CBI both found that funds were channeled through Yes Bank’s exposure to RHFL and RCFL, which then extended loans to entities linked to the Reliance Anil Ambani Group. These transactions are now part of ongoing money-laundering and corruption probes.
ED flags fund diversion and control failures
According to the ED, substantial amounts were diverted, lent to related companies, and siphoned off. Large corporate loans meant for business purposes were instead funneled into the accounts of group-linked entities.
The agency highlighted serious control lapses at the lending stage — loans were processed with unusual speed, sometimes with applications, approvals, and disbursals completed in a single day. In several instances, money was released even before loans were formally sanctioned. Field inspections were skipped, documentation was incomplete or altered, and securities were inadequate or missing. The ED said these repeated and deliberate lapses pointed to “intentional control failures.”
A CBI chargesheet filed recently also alleged that former Yes Bank CEO Rana Kapoor and industrialist Anil Ambani were part of a conspiracy that caused losses exceeding ₹2,700 crore to the bank through irregular investments in Reliance Group firms.
ED steps up RCom investigation
Separately, the ED has intensified its probe into Reliance Communications Ltd (RCom) and its related entities, finding evidence that the group diverted more than ₹13,600 crore. The agency said loans taken by one company were used to repay borrowings of another, transferred to connected parties, or parked in mutual funds — all in violation of lending terms.
Over ₹12,600 crore was allegedly routed to related entities, while ₹1,800 crore was invested in fixed deposits and mutual funds before being liquidated and rerouted to group firms. The ED also uncovered misuse of bill discounting to funnel funds and foreign outward remittances to move money abroad.
With the latest attachment of the DAKC land, the total value of assets attached in connection with the Reliance Group’s ongoing money-laundering probes stands at ₹7,545 crore.
The ED said it remains committed to pursuing perpetrators of financial crime and recovering the proceeds of crime for rightful claimants. Further investigation is underway.
The attachment, made by the Directorate of Enforcement’s Special Task Force, Headquarters, was carried out under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002. It follows an ongoing probe into alleged diversion and misuse of bank loans by Reliance Communications Ltd (RCom) and other Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group (ADAG) companies.
Earlier, the ED had attached 42 properties worth over ₹3,083 crore in cases involving RCom, Reliance Commercial Finance Ltd, and Reliance Home Finance Ltd.
The investigation stems from a CBI FIR filed under Sections 120-B, 406, and 420 of the Indian Penal Code and Section 13(2) read with Section 13(1)(d) of the Prevention of Corruption Act against RCom, Anil Ambani, and others.
Trouble mounts for Anil Ambani-led Reliance
According to ED, RCom and its group companies availed loans from domestic and foreign lenders between 2010 and 2012, amounting to ₹40,185 crore, of which five banks have declared the accounts as fraudulent.
The investigating agency’s probe has revealed that loans taken by one group entity from one bank were allegedly used to repay borrowings of other entities, transferred to related parties, or invested in mutual funds—actions that violated loan sanction conditions.
ED revealed that over ₹13,600 crore was diverted for “evergreening” of loans, ₹12,600 crore was transferred to connected parties, and ₹1,800 crore was parked in fixed deposits and mutual funds before being rerouted to group firms.
It also uncovered extensive misuse of bill discounting facilities and outward remittances abroad to siphon off funds.
With the latest action, the cumulative value of properties attached in the Reliance Group’s bank fraud cases stands at ₹7,545 crore. Moreover, ED said it remains committed to pursuing financial crime perpetrators and recovering the proceeds of crime for rightful claimants.
Yes Bank–Reliance loan link under scanner
The ED’s probe has uncovered that between 2017 and 2019, Yes Bank invested ₹2,965 crore in RHFL and ₹2,045 crore in RCFL. By December 2019, these investments had turned bad, with ₹1,353.50 crore unpaid for RHFL and ₹1,984 crore for RCFL.
Investigators found that funds collected from the public through the former Reliance Nippon Mutual Fund were not supposed to be invested directly in Anil Ambani Group finance companies due to SEBI’s conflict-of-interest rules. To bypass this restriction, the money was allegedly routed indirectly via Yes Bank’s investments, which ultimately reached group firms.
The ED and CBI both found that funds were channeled through Yes Bank’s exposure to RHFL and RCFL, which then extended loans to entities linked to the Reliance Anil Ambani Group. These transactions are now part of ongoing money-laundering and corruption probes.
ED flags fund diversion and control failures
According to the ED, substantial amounts were diverted, lent to related companies, and siphoned off. Large corporate loans meant for business purposes were instead funneled into the accounts of group-linked entities.
The agency highlighted serious control lapses at the lending stage — loans were processed with unusual speed, sometimes with applications, approvals, and disbursals completed in a single day. In several instances, money was released even before loans were formally sanctioned. Field inspections were skipped, documentation was incomplete or altered, and securities were inadequate or missing. The ED said these repeated and deliberate lapses pointed to “intentional control failures.”
A CBI chargesheet filed recently also alleged that former Yes Bank CEO Rana Kapoor and industrialist Anil Ambani were part of a conspiracy that caused losses exceeding ₹2,700 crore to the bank through irregular investments in Reliance Group firms.
ED steps up RCom investigation
Separately, the ED has intensified its probe into Reliance Communications Ltd (RCom) and its related entities, finding evidence that the group diverted more than ₹13,600 crore. The agency said loans taken by one company were used to repay borrowings of another, transferred to connected parties, or parked in mutual funds — all in violation of lending terms.
Over ₹12,600 crore was allegedly routed to related entities, while ₹1,800 crore was invested in fixed deposits and mutual funds before being liquidated and rerouted to group firms. The ED also uncovered misuse of bill discounting to funnel funds and foreign outward remittances to move money abroad.
With the latest attachment of the DAKC land, the total value of assets attached in connection with the Reliance Group’s ongoing money-laundering probes stands at ₹7,545 crore.
The ED said it remains committed to pursuing perpetrators of financial crime and recovering the proceeds of crime for rightful claimants. Further investigation is underway.
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