ED attaches properties worth Rs 2.73 crore in money laundering case

The Lucknow zonal office of the Directorate of Enforcement (ED) has provisionally attached immovable assets worth Rs 2.73 crore in connection with a money laundering case, involving a firm named Niharika Ventures and Developers, the agency said on Saturday.

The attached properties are in the form of five residential flats located in Prayagraj, Uttar Pradesh.

"ED, Lucknow has provisionally attached immovable assets on 13/12/2024 amounting to Rs. 2.73 Crore (approx.) in the form of five residential flats located in Prayagraj, Uttar Pradesh, registered in the names of Om Prakash Dwivedi, Abhishek Dwivedi, Mrs Niharika Dwivedi, and Smt. Radha Rani in the case of M/s Niharika Ventures and Developers under the provisions of the PMLA, 2002," the agency said in a post on X.

Earlier today, in another action, the Directorate of Enforcement (ED) restituted assets worth Rs 4,025 crore to JSW, which was a Successful Resolution Applicant to the assets of erstwhile Bhushan Power and Steel Ltd under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC) corporate resolution process (CIRP).

The assets were initially provisionally attached by the ED under Section 5 of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA). The attachment was made after investigations revealed that the former promoters of Bhushan Power and Steel Ltd had defrauded banks and diverted funds for private investments.

The restitution was made under the second proviso to Section 8(8) of PMLA (restitution pending trial) read with Rule 3A of PMLA Restoration of Property Rules, with the approval of the Supreme Court on December 11 this year.

With respect to ED's powers to attach property of corporate debtors under investigation during CIRP the Supreme Court has kept the issue open.

Further, the powers of ED to verify the eligibility of corporate debtors under PMLA investigation for the benefit of Section 32A of IBC are also kept open by the Supreme Court.