PMC Bank fraud case: ED attaches three hotels worth Rs 100 cr in Delhi

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has attached three hotels worth around Rs 100 crore in Delhi in connection with its money laundering probe in the PMC Bank fraud case, the central agency said on Friday.

The three hotels have been identified by the agency as the Fab Hotels group and are located in Kailash Colony, East of Kailash and Kalkaji areas of the national capital.

"The attached three hotels are owned by Libra Realtors Pvt Ltd, Deewan Realtors Pvt Ltd, Rakesh Kumar Wadhawan, Romy Mehra, Libra Hotels Pvt Ltd and its directors," the agency said in a statement.

It said the "market value" of these three properties is about Rs 100 crore.

It identified the assets as:Hotel Conclave Boutique, now known as Fab Hotels at A-20, Kailash Colony in Delhi; Hotel Conclave Comfort, now known as Fab Hotels at D-150, East of Kailash and Hotel Conclave Executive, now known as Fab Hotels at C-22, Kalkaji.

The agency said its probe found that "proceeds of crime totalling Rs 247 crore were obtained fraudulently by Libra Realtors Pvt Ltd, Deewan Realtors Pvt from PMC Bank in the guise of loans".

"These loans are part of the Rs 6,117 crores owed by HDIL group of companies to the PMC Bank," the ED claimed.

The ED had filed a PMLA case to probe the alleged loan fraud in the Punjab and Maharashtra Co-operative (PMC) Bank in October last year against Housing Development Infrastructure Ltd (HDIL), its promoters Rakesh Kumar Wadhawan, his son Sarang Wadhawan, its former chairman Waryam Singh and ex-managing director Joy Thomas.

It took cognisance of a Mumbai Police economic offences wing FIR against them that charged them for causing "wrongful loss, prima facie to the tune of Rs 4,355 crore to PMC Bank, and corresponding gains to themselves".

The ED has earlier attached properties of Rakesh Wadhawan and his family trust worth Rs 193 crore and had seized jewellery worth Rs 63 crore.

The Wadhawan father and son were also arrested by the ED last year in this case and they are in judicial custody at present.