Nine locations, nine red flags: What ED found during its raids on Rajesh Exports

Nine locations, nine red flags: What ED found during its raids on Rajesh Exports

The searches, part of an ongoing probe into alleged financial irregularities at one of India's largest gold and jewellery companies, have already surfaced what investigators describe as significant potential violations

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Rajesh Exports: The fresh searches were understood to have been carried out under the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA) at the Bengaluru-headquartered company.Rajesh Exports: The fresh searches were understood to have been carried out under the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA) at the Bengaluru-headquartered company.
Business Today Desk
  • Jun 24, 2026,
  • Updated Jun 24, 2026 9:37 AM IST

The Enforcement Directorate has launched simultaneous searches across nine locations linked to Rajesh Exports Ltd. in Bengaluru and Mumbai, and preliminary findings are raising serious questions across multiple fronts, share transactions, gold inventory, trade receivables, and overseas investments.

The searches, part of an ongoing probe into alleged financial irregularities at one of India's largest gold and jewellery companies, have already surfaced what investigators describe as significant potential violations.

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Suspected siphoning through benami share deals

Among the first findings to emerge is evidence of multiple transactions in the shares of Rajesh Exports allegedly routed through benamidars, proxy holders used to conceal the true ownership of assets. Officials suspect that more than USD 20 million may have been taken out of the country through these transactions, and investigators are now tracing the fund trail and identifying the individuals involved.

Physical gold falls 40% short of book records

A striking discrepancy has been found in the company's gold inventory. During searches, investigators reportedly discovered that the physical stock of gold held by the company was nearly 40% lower than the quantity recorded in its books of accounts. The gap is being examined to determine whether it reflects systematic accounting irregularities, diversion of assets, or both.

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Rs 3,000 crore in trade transactions under scrutiny

The ED is also looking closely at the adjustment of approximately Rs 3,000 crore worth of trade receivables against gold imports, the delivery and authenticity of which are in question. Officials suspect that some of these transactions may have been deliberately structured to obscure the true nature of the financial dealings involved.

Related to this, investigators are examining the netting off of trade receivables and payables of nearly Rs 3,000 crore involving four to five foreign entities based in the UAE. These entities are under scrutiny because of concerns about their credentials and the nature of their transactions with the company.

African gold mining investments missing from subsidiary records

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A further line of inquiry concerns overseas direct investments made by Rajesh Exports in African gold mining projects. Preliminary findings suggest the company invested more than Rs 1,000 crore in gold mines in Africa, but according to investigators, these investments do not appear in the financial records of any of the company's subsidiaries, raising sharp questions about where the funds went and how they were utilised.

The Enforcement Directorate has launched simultaneous searches across nine locations linked to Rajesh Exports Ltd. in Bengaluru and Mumbai, and preliminary findings are raising serious questions across multiple fronts, share transactions, gold inventory, trade receivables, and overseas investments.

The searches, part of an ongoing probe into alleged financial irregularities at one of India's largest gold and jewellery companies, have already surfaced what investigators describe as significant potential violations.

Advertisement

Suspected siphoning through benami share deals

Among the first findings to emerge is evidence of multiple transactions in the shares of Rajesh Exports allegedly routed through benamidars, proxy holders used to conceal the true ownership of assets. Officials suspect that more than USD 20 million may have been taken out of the country through these transactions, and investigators are now tracing the fund trail and identifying the individuals involved.

Physical gold falls 40% short of book records

A striking discrepancy has been found in the company's gold inventory. During searches, investigators reportedly discovered that the physical stock of gold held by the company was nearly 40% lower than the quantity recorded in its books of accounts. The gap is being examined to determine whether it reflects systematic accounting irregularities, diversion of assets, or both.

Advertisement

Rs 3,000 crore in trade transactions under scrutiny

The ED is also looking closely at the adjustment of approximately Rs 3,000 crore worth of trade receivables against gold imports, the delivery and authenticity of which are in question. Officials suspect that some of these transactions may have been deliberately structured to obscure the true nature of the financial dealings involved.

Related to this, investigators are examining the netting off of trade receivables and payables of nearly Rs 3,000 crore involving four to five foreign entities based in the UAE. These entities are under scrutiny because of concerns about their credentials and the nature of their transactions with the company.

African gold mining investments missing from subsidiary records

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A further line of inquiry concerns overseas direct investments made by Rajesh Exports in African gold mining projects. Preliminary findings suggest the company invested more than Rs 1,000 crore in gold mines in Africa, but according to investigators, these investments do not appear in the financial records of any of the company's subsidiaries, raising sharp questions about where the funds went and how they were utilised.

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