Daijiworld Media Network - New Delhi
New Delhi, Dec 5: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) announced on Friday that it has provisionally attached assets worth Rs 10,117 crore belonging to entities of the Anil Ambani-led Reliance Group, marking a major escalation in ongoing investigations into multiple bank fraud cases.
In its latest action, the agency attached 18 properties, fixed deposits, bank balances, and unquoted shareholdings valued at Rs 1,120 crore in connection with the Reliance Home Finance Ltd (RHFL) / Reliance Commercial Finance Ltd (RCFL) / Yes Bank fraud case.
Breakdown of Newly Attached Assets
The ED said the attachments include:
• 7 properties of Reliance Infrastructure Ltd
• 2 properties of Reliance Power Ltd
• 9 properties of Reliance Value Services Pvt Ltd
• Fixed deposits held by companies including Reliance Value Services Pvt Ltd, Reliance Venture Asset Management Pvt Ltd, Phi Management Solutions Pvt Ltd, Adhar Property Consultancy Pvt Ltd, and Gamesa Investment Management Pvt Ltd
• Unquoted investments of Reliance Venture Asset Management Pvt Ltd and Phi Management Solutions Pvt Ltd
This comes on top of earlier attachments worth Rs 8,997 crore linked to fraud cases involving Reliance Communications (RCOM), RHFL, and RCFL.
Total Asset Attachment Crosses Rs 10,000 Crore
“Cumulatively, the total attachment related to the Reliance ADA Group has reached ?10,117 crore,” the ED said, adding that investigations revealed fraudulent diversion of public funds by several group companies including RCOM, RHFL, RCFL, Reliance Infrastructure, and Reliance Power.
Yes Bank Exposure Turns NPA
The agency noted that between 2017 and 2019, Yes Bank invested Rs 2,965 crore in RHFL and Rs 2,045 crore in RCFL.
By December 2019, these investments turned non-performing, leaving outstanding dues of:
• Rs 1,353.50 crore for RHFL
• Rs 1,984 crore for RCFL
The ED stated that RHFL and RCFL together had access to over Rs 11,000 crore of public funds, which were allegedly misused.
Findings on Loan Diversion
According to the ED:
• RCOM and its group entities diverted over Rs 13,600 crore for evergreening loans
• More than Rs 12,600 crore was routed to connected parties
• Over Rs 1,800 crore was invested in FDs and mutual funds and subsequently liquidated to funnel money back into group companies
CBI Case Triggers ED Probe
The financial probe stems from a CBI FIR registered under various sections of the IPC and the Prevention of Corruption Act against RCOM, Anil Ambani, and others.
The ED said the investigation is ongoing, and more actions could follow as the extent of alleged diversion becomes clearer.