Anil Ambani.
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has constituted a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to probe the alleged banking and corporate fraud worth Rs 40,000 crore involving Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group and its associated entities. The SIT is headed by an Additional Director level officer of the Federal Investigation Agency’s Headquarters Investigation Unit (HIU) and includes about half a dozen other investigating officers.
The Supreme Court last week, while reviewing the cases against Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group (ADAG), directed the ED to set up an SIT for a fair, independent, speedy and neutral investigation.
Collusion, collusion and conspiracy with CBI
The court had asked the CBI, which is probing the cases related to the group, to investigate the collusion, collusion and conspiracy (if any) and take its investigation to its logical conclusion. ED has been investigating Anil Ambani and his Reliance Group companies since last year and so far it has filed three Enforcement Case Information Reports (ECIR) under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) and has attached assets worth about Rs 12 thousand crores. ECIR is ED’s action equivalent to Police FIR.
investigation of suspicious financial transactions
Sources said the SIT may file more ECIRs to probe alleged irregularities and suspicious financial transactions carried out by ADAG group companies and their officials. ED had questioned Anil Ambani (66) last year in connection with alleged bank loan irregularities of his group companies. Punit Garg, a former top executive of the company and former chairman of RCom, was recently arrested by the ED.
Denial of any irregularities
Anil Ambani group companies have denied any irregularity in the past. ED had earlier said that it has detected fraudulent misuse of public funds by various companies of Reliance Anil Ambani group. These companies include Reliance Communications Limited, Reliance Home Finance Limited (RHFL), Reliance Commercial Finance Limited (RCFL), Reliance Infrastructure Limited (RIL) and Reliance Power Limited (RHFL).