Gurugram: ED carries out search operation in realty major DLF's office in money laundering case against Supertech

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Saturday carried out searches at the Gurugram office of DLF, a prominent real estate company, in connection with its ongoing probes into money laundering against Supertech, a real estate firm, and its promoters.

This action comes as a part of a larger investigation into Supertech and its promoters, who are accused of defrauding homebuyers of Rs 164 crore. The ED is looking into possible links between DLF and Supertech, particularly financial dealings between the two companies.

The ED obtained documents and other evidence from DLF's offices, PTI quoted sources as saying. It is still unclear what specific information the ED is looking for and what role DLF may have played in the alleged money laundering scheme.

The ED arrested Supertech promoter, R K Arora, in June 2022, on allegations of diverting funds from investors and homebuyers to numerous shell companies. Arora, the primary controller of the group, was implicated in a money-laundering case filed under several criminal sections of the PMLA.

The case arose from 26 FIRs filed by Delhi, Haryana, and Uttar Pradesh police departments against Supertech and its associates. The company stands accused of defrauding 670 homebuyers to the tune of Rs. 164 crore. 

The ED alleged that substantial funds amounting to hundreds of crores were diverted through the Supertech Group, leading to a failure to meet agreed obligations, including providing timely possession of flats to customers. The siphoned-off funds, the ED claimed, were systematically rerouted to various shell companies, highlighting the substantial scale of this fraudulent operation.

It claimed that Supertech Group "siphoned off Rs 440 crore received from customers and homebuyers for purchasing land in Gurugram in 2013-14 at highly inflated prices while their already promised projects in Noida were not completed".

Unfortunately, these loans soon fell into non-performing asset (NPA) status, leading the banks to label them as "fraud".

Established in 1988, Supertech Ltd has delivered approximately 80,000 apartments, primarily in the Delhi-NCR market. Currently, the company is developing around 25 projects across the National Capital Region.

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