ED attaches Rs 834 cr land of Emaar India, MGF Developments under PMLA

The attached properties, spanning 401.65 acres in Gurugram and Delhi, are linked to an ongoing investigation into fraudulent land acquisitions

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has provisionally attached immovable properties worth Rs 834.03 crore belonging to Emaar India Ltd and MGF Developments Ltd under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002. The properties, which span 401.65 acres, are located in Gurugram, Haryana, and Delhi, according to a post by the economic intelligence agency on the social media platform X (formerly Twitter) on  August 29.

The ED’s post indicated that Rs 501.13 crore worth of land belongs to Emaar India, while Rs 332.69 crore worth of land belongs to MGF Developments. This attachment is part of an ongoing investigation into allegations of money laundering related to the issuance of licence no 97/2010, dated September 18, 2010, by the Department of Town and Country Planning (DTCP) for a residential plotted colony in sectors 65 and 66 of Gurugram.

Background of the case

The ED initiated its investigation based on a first information report registered by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) against several individuals and entities, including Bhupinder Singh Hooda, the former Chief Minister of Haryana, Trilok Chand Gupta, the former director of DTCP, Emaar MGF Land Ltd, and 14 other coloniser companies.

The case revolves around allegations that the accused parties engaged in fraudulent activities by cheating landowners, the public, and the state of Haryana. The FIR suggests that the accused manipulated the issuance of notifications under sections 4 and 6 of the Land Acquisition Act, 1894, to compel landowners to sell their properties at below-market prices to the coloniser companies. The land in question was earmarked for acquisition by the Haryana Urban Development Authority (HUDA), but the real intention behind the acquisition appears to have been to facilitate the transfer of these lands to the coloniser companies.

ED’s findings

The ED’s investigation revealed that Emaar MGF Land, a joint venture between Emaar Properties PJSC of Dubai and MGF Developments, applied for a licence to develop a residential plotted colony on 112.46 acres of land in sectors 65 and 66 of Gurugram.

To secure the necessary licence, the company allegedly executed six backdated and fabricated development agreements with farmers, falsely claiming these agreements were made in April 2009. In reality, the agreements were signed in March 2010, just before the notification under Section 4 of the Land Acquisition Act was issued. This allowed the company to avoid complications in obtaining the licence from the DTCP.

The ED further revealed that the acquisition of land for HUDA was never the true intent of the involved parties. Instead, the acquisition was used as a tool to coerce farmers into selling their land to the builders under the threat of acquisition proceedings.

Emaar MGF Land Ltd split

Following the alleged fraudulent activities, Emaar MGF Land Ltd was split into two entities: Emaar India Ltd and MGF Developments Ltd, with 60.11 per cent and 39.89 per cent shares in the combined properties, respectively, ED later said in a press statement. The attached properties include Rs 501.13 crore worth of land for Emaar India and land valued at Rs 332.69 crore for MGF Developments, representing their respective shares of the ‘Proceeds of Crime’ as defined under the PMLA.

This is not the first time Emaar India has come under the scrutiny of law enforcement agencies. In June 2023, senior officials of the company appeared before the Economic Offences Wing (EOW) of the Delhi Police in connection with a real estate fraud case. The EOW’s investigation was initiated following a complaint by a homebuyer, Manish Kumar Patni, in January 2023.