In a recent move against the real estate firm Amrapali Group, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) has provisionally seized immovable properties valued at Rs 99.26 crore. These properties, including office and factory land and buildings of Mauria Udyog Ltd., were attached under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002. The ED stated that the fair market value of the seized properties was Rs. 99.26 crore as of December 30, 2016.
The ED has issued a total of six Provisional Attachment Orders under the PMLA, 2002, amounting to properties worth Rs 303.08 crore. The investigation was initiated by the ED’s Lucknow Zonal Office based on FIRs filed in Gautam Buddha Nagar, Uttar Pradesh, and EOW, Delhi Police, following a Supreme Court directive. The Supreme Court’s order in the Bikram Chatterji versus Union of India case on July 23, 2019, was related to petitions from distressed homebuyers.
Allegations against the Amrapali Group included collecting substantial sums from homebuyers, failing to deliver flats on time, and diverting and misappropriating funds through fraudulent means. The ED’s investigation uncovered that the accused, including Directors of the Amrapali Group and Mauria Udyog, diverted funds through fake transactions involving procurement of construction material. These funds were then laundered through shell entities and bogus suppliers, leading to irreversible dissipation of the Proceeds of Crime (POC).
