ED arrests two people in money-laundering probe against Sahara Group — Details here
The news report highlighted that the two individuals taken into custody have been identified as Vailaparampil Abraham and Jitendra Prasad Verma. One of the arrested served as an executive director at the Sahara Group Chairman's core management team, while another was a long-time associate of the group cum property broker.
The two arrested were presented before a local Kolkata court on Saturday, 12 July 2025, and the judicial body sent them back into custody till Monday, 14 July 2025, according to the agency report, citing the ED statement.
The ED alleged that Vailaparampil Abraham played a 'key role' in coordinating and facilitating the sale of Sahara Group properties, many of which involved "substantial unaccounted" cash components that were allegedly siphoned off, according to the agency report citing the ED statement.
The investigation agency's statement also claimed that Jitendra Prasad Verma was 'actively involved' in executing several of these property transactions and knowingly assisted in routing the large cash proceeds which were generated from these sale transactions. This resulted in a contribution to the concealment and dissipation of the crime.
ED reportedly encountered 'incriminating' evidence during its searches, which suggested that the Sahara Group's properties were being disposed of one by one in a 'clandestine' (secretly and often illegally) manner.
The promoters of the Sahara Group were found to be involved in such malpractices while remaining outside India, reported the news agency citing ED.
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) alleged that the Sahara Group was running a 'Ponzi' scheme through various entities.
HICCSL, Sahara Credit Cooperative Society Limited (SCCSL), Saharayn Universal Multipurpose Cooperative Society (SUMCS), Stars Multipurpose Cooperative Society Limited (SMCSL), Sahara India Commercial Corporation Ltd (SICCL), Sahara India Real Estate Corporation Ltd (SIRECL), Sahara Housing Investment Corporation Ltd (SHICL) and other group entities were involved in the case, according to the agency report.
More than 500 FIRS have been filed by different state police departments, such as the Odisha, Bihar, and Rajasthan police, in the money-laundering case against the Sahara Group. The ED is analysing all the complaints filed against Sahara Group entities and related persons before filing the case under India's Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).
'These funds were managed in an unregulated manner without depositor oversight and maturity proceeds were not repaid instead reinvested under coercion or misrepresentation, and books were manipulated to camouflage such non-repayments,' said ED in its statement, cited the news agency.
The financial agency also alleged that despite the financial incapacity, the group continued to collect fresh deposits, part of which were siphoned off for unnamed assets and personal expenses. 'Assets of the group were also sold for partial cash payments, further denying rightful claims of depositors,' the ED said, according to the report.
Earlier this year, ED attached 707 acres of land worth ₹ 1,460 crore in the Aamby Valley in Maharashtra and 1,023 acres of land worth ₹ 1,538 crore in Sahara Prime City Ltd to the investigations, as per the agency report.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
New Indian Express
28 minutes ago
- New Indian Express
Robert Vadra appears before ED in Sanjay Bhandari case
NEW DELHI: Robert Vadra, the businessman husband of Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, appeared before the Enforcement Directorate on Monday for his questioning in connection with the UK-based arms consultant Sanjay Bhandari linked money laundering case, official sources said. The businessman's statement will be recorded under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), they said. The 56-year-old Vadra was called by the agency to depose last month but he had sought deferment of his summons as he had to travel abroad. He is being investigated by the central probe agency in three different money laundering cases, including this one. The two others pertain to alleged irregularities in land deals. The 63-year-old Bhandari fled to London in 2016 soon after the Income-Tax department raided him in Delhi. He was recently declared a fugitive economic offender by a Delhi court. A UK court last month refused the Indian government's application seeking permission to appeal in Britain's Supreme Court against the discharge of Bhandari in an extradition case against him, virtually ruling out chances of his being brought to the country to face the law. The ED had filed a chargesheet in this case in 2023 alleging Bhandari "acquired" the 12, Bryanston Square house located in London in 2009 and got it renovated "as per the directions of Vadra and the funds for renovation were provided by Robert Vadra." Vadra has denied that he owned any London property directly or indirectly. Terming these charges as a political witch hunt against him, he has said that he was being "hounded and harassed" to subserve political ends.
&w=3840&q=100)
Business Standard
29 minutes ago
- Business Standard
National Herald case: Court reserves order on ED chargesheet cognisance
ED alleges that Gandhis held the majority 76 per cent shares in Young Indian, which fraudulently usurped the assets of AJL in exchange for a Rs 90 crore loan A Delhi court on Monday reserved its order on taking cognisance of the chargesheet filed by the Enforcement Directorate in the National Herald case. Special Judge Vishal Gogne said the matter will be heard on July 29. The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has accused Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi, late Congress leaders Motilal Vora and Oscar Fernandes, as well as Suman Dubey, Sam Pitroda and a private company, Young Indian, of conspiracy and money laundering over the fraudulent takeover of Rs 2,000 crore worth properties belonging to Associated Journals Limited (AJL), which published the National Herald newspaper. ED alleges that Gandhis held the majority 76 per cent shares in Young Indian, which fraudulently usurped the assets of AJL in exchange for a Rs 90 crore loan. The chargesheet names Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi, Sam Pitroda, Suman Dubey, Sunil Bhandari, Young Indian and Dotex Merchandise Pvt Ltd. (Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
NDTV
37 minutes ago
- NDTV
Robert Vadra Reaches Probe Agency Office, Wife Priyanka Gandhi By His Side
New Delhi: Businessman Robert Vadra, husband of Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and brother-in-law of Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi, has appeared before the Enforcement Directorate (ED) at their Delhi office for questioning in a money laundering probe linked to two London property deals. Ms Gandhi Vadra accompanied her husband to the agency's office this morning. The probe pertains to two properties at 19, Bryanston Square and Grosvenor Hill Court, 13 Bourdon Street in London, owned by UK-based arms consultant Sanjay Bhandari. The ED alleges these are benami properties of Mr Vadra, and is now probing his alleged link to Mr Bhandari. Mr Vadra has denied the allegations and claimed he was being "hounded and harassed" by the ED. The Bryanston Square property, which was acquired by Mr Bhandari in 2009, was funded by Mr Vadra and later renovated on his direction, officials have claimed, adding that the businessman stayed at this property on multiple occasions during his London visits. Both properties now feature among a list of land parcels being probed by the ED as alleged "proceeds of crime" under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA). The federal agency that investigates high-profile economic offences had filed the PMLA case in 2016. Mr Vadra had skipped at least two ED summons in this case last month, with sources suggesting the businessman was abroad to attend his daughter's graduation ceremony. The ED is now probing the benami transactions linked to Mr Bhandari, who is wanted in the country on charges of tax evasion and money laundering. A special court in Delhi declared him a fugitive economic offender a week ago in connection with an income tax case involving undisclosed foreign assets. Another key figure in this case is NRI businessman CC Thampi, who allegedly played a significant role in facilitating the property deals through a Dubai-based company. Mr Vadra was earlier questioned by the federal agency in April in another money laundering probe linked to a 2008 land deal in Haryana. The ED probe was over a land that was bought by Mr Vadra's company, Skylight Hospitality, for Rs 7.5 crore and later sold to DLF for Rs 58 crore. The businessman had then called the ED action a "political witch hunt" against him and his family.
