The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has provisionally attached movable and immovable assets valued at approximately Rs 112.90 crore under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002. These assets are linked to an alleged Rs 376 crore bank fraud involving M/s LEEL Electricals Limited, its main promoter Bharat Raj Punj, and others. The attached properties include land, industrial plots, residential properties, bank balances, fixed deposits, and mutual fund investments located in various states across India and a residential property in Houston, USA.
Investigators revealed that these assets were owned and controlled by the promoter’s family and were allegedly held through related and shell entities to hide the proceeds of crime. The money laundering probe originated from an FIR filed by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in New Delhi under different sections of the Indian Penal Code and the Prevention of Corruption Act. The CBI’s FIR and subsequent charge sheet accused the company’s promoters and senior officials of conspiring to defraud a consortium of banks, leading to a wrongful loss of about Rs 376 crore to the State Bank of India (SBI) and IDBI Bank.
The ED investigation uncovered that the accused inflated the value of assets, inventories, and receivables in the company’s records to portray a stronger financial position and continue accessing bank credit facilities. Additionally, the central probe agency alleged that the diverted funds were channeled through a network of promoter-controlled companies in India and then transferred to overseas subsidiaries disguised as investments and loans, complicating the recovery process. The siphoned funds were purportedly invested in immovable properties held by related companies and family members, with some properties subsequently sold, and the proceeds allegedly used for personal and operational expenses of the promoter family.
The ED also seized a residential property in Texas jointly owned by Bharat Raj Punj and his wife Pooja Punj, stating that it represented illicit proceeds held outside India. The agency confirmed that further investigation into the case is ongoing.
