ED attaches fresh ₹186 crore assets in bank fraud case against DHFL

Fresh assets worth about Rs 186 crore have been attached under the anti-money laundering law in an alleged bank loan fraud case against the Dewan Housing Finance Corporation Ltd (DHFL) and its promoters, the ED said on Tuesday.

The assets provisionally attached under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) include 154 flats and movable assets in the form of receivables pertaining to 20 flats in Mumbai, the federal probe agency said in a statement.

The total value of the attached properties is Rs 185.84 crore. An order was issued under the PMLA by the Mumbai zonal office of the agency on September 5, it said.

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) case stems from a CBI FIR against DHFL, its promoters Kapil Wadhawan and Dheeraj Wadhawan, and others for allegedly cheating a consortium of 17 banks led by the Union Bank of India.

The accused were involved in "siphoning off" and "misappropriation" of bank loan funds by "falsifying" the books of the DHFL and linked default of the bank loans.

During 2017-18, Kapil Wadhawan and Dheeraj Wadhawan conspired to "divert" DHFL funds through proxy companies for fraudulent trading in DHFL shares, the ED alleged.

"These trades, executed via brokers, were pre-arranged to rig the share price and volumes of public listed DHFL stock," it said.

The agency had attached assets worth Rs 70.39 crore in this case earlier and with the latest order, the total attachment stands at Rs 256.23 crore.

A chargesheet was filed by the ED against the accused in April before a special PMLA court in Mumbai.