ED arrests Wadhawan brothers in Yes Bank case

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Thursday arrested DHFL promoters Kapil and Dheeraj Wadhawan in connection with its money laundering probe against Yes Bank co-founder Rana Kapoor and others, officials said.

The brothers were remanded to 10-day ED custody by a special court in Mumbai, they said.

The Wadhawans are presently in jail after being arrested by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), which is also probing the same case.

They were arrested under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), the officials said.

The Wadhawan brothers, also being probed by the ED in another money laundering probe linked to late gangster Iqbal Mirchi, were summoned by the agency multiple times in the Yes Bank case but they had cited the ongoing COVID-19 travel restrictions to skip the summons.

Five vehicles of the Wadhawan brothers were seized by the ED in April after they and their family members were reported to have unauthorisedly travelled to Mahabaleshwar from Lonavala in Maharashtra during the nationwide coronavirus-induced lockdown.

As many as 44 companies belonging to 10 large business groups, including Anil Ambani Group, Essel Group, ILFS, Dewan Housing Finance Corporation Ltd, Cox & Kings, and Bharat Infra, reportedly accounted for bad loans of Rs 34,000 crore of Yes Bank.

The ED has accused Kapoor, his family members and others of laundering "proceeds of crime" worth Rs 4,300 crore by receiving alleged kickbacks in lieu of extending big loans through their bank that later allegedly turned non-performing assets (NPA).

Kapoor is also in ED custody.