ED attaches Rs 581 crore assets in RHFL case; Reliance Anil Ambani Group attachment now Rs 16,310 crore

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Thursday said that it had provisionally attached 31 immovable properties worth Rs 581.65 crore in connection with the ongoing investigation into Reliance Home Finance Limited (RHFL) and Reliance Commercial Finance Limited (RCFL).

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The attached assets, primarily land parcels, are spread across multiple states, including Goa, Kerala, Karnataka, Punjab, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Jharkhand, Maharashtra, Delhi, West Bengal, Andhra Pradesh, and Rajasthan.

The attachment follows a series of search operations conducted by the ED on March 6 in the case of Reliance Power Limited (R-POWER) under the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA). The move also brings the cumulative attachment in the bank fraud cases linked to RCFL, RHFL, and Reliance Communications Limited (RCOM) to over Rs 16,310 crore. 

"The cumulative Reliance Anil Ambani Group attachment has reached Rs.16,310 crore," the ED said in a statement. "During the course of search operations under PMLA and FEMA, assets amounting to Rs 2.48 crore in the form of Fixed Deposits/Mutual Funds/Cash were frozen/seized under provisions of PMLA/FEMA." 

The agency said it has also seized balances in 13 bank accounts of Reliance Infrastructure Limited (R-INFRA) to the tune of Rs 77.86 crore under Section 37A of FEMA. 

According to the probe agency, RHFL and RCFL had raised public funds from several banks and financial institutions. Of these, more than Rs 11,000 crore turned into non-performing assets. The ED said its probe found that public funds raised by RHFL and RCFL were allegedly diverted to various Reliance Group companies, including Reliance Infrastructure Limited, Reliance Power Limited, Reliance Communications Limited, and Reliance Capital Limited. 

These funds were diverted by routing them through a large number of shell or dummy entities controlled and managed by Reliance Anil Ambani Group, the statement said. "These shell/dummy entities had negligible financial strength and no business operations. The investigation has revealed mala fide intent on the part of the group promoters and key persons." 

The ED said its investigation has uncovered a deliberate attempt to siphon off public funds, with evidence pointing to the mala fide intent of key promoters and individuals involved in the group. The assets attached under the Provisional Attachment Order issued on March 11 are being considered as representing the proceeds of crime.