Latest news with #FugitiveEconomicOffendersAct
NDTV
14-07-2025
- Politics
- NDTV
Robert Vadra Evaded Probe Agency Questions on Sanjay Bhandari Links: Report
New Delhi: Robert Vadra, husband of Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, was evasive in answering ED questions on his alleged financial association with UK-based arms consultant Sanjay Bhandari and his family members, sources said on Monday. Summoned in connection with a money laundering case registered in 2016, Robert Vadra was non-cooperative during his two-hour questioning and failed to answer questions on two London property deals, said sources. Vadra, accompanied by his wife, reached the ED office in central Delhi around noon and left almost two hours later, without giving any statement to mediapersons. The businessman, son-in-law of Congress Parliamentary Party chairperson Sonia Gandhi, has denied any wrongdoing in his repeated appearances before the ED. On several earlier occasions, Vadra has hit out at the ED for harassing him by calling him on several occasions despite his stand that he has nothing new to share with them. The ED has alleged that the two properties in question are benami properties of Vadra, which he acquired in collusion with UK-based arms consultant Sanjay Bhandari. The two London properties are at Grosvenor Hill Court, 13, Bourdon Street, and 19, Bryanston Square. The ED treats them as proceeds of crime related to a money laundering case registered in 2016. The ED alleged that Vadra lived in the Bryanston Square property on a few occasions during his London visits. The properties under the ED's lens drew attention after investigators sniffed benami deals between Vadra and Bhandari. The investigation agency alleged that Bhandari renovated a property in London in 2009 using funds provided by Vadra. Earlier on July 5, Bhandari was declared a fugitive economic offender by a Delhi Court, a development which came within months of a British court's refusal to extradite him to India. Bhandari, 62, who fled to the UK in 2016, was declared a fugitive economic offender under the Fugitive Economic Offenders Act, 2018, paving the way for the probe agency to attach his assets. The ED filed a chargesheet against Bhandari in 2020 based on proceedings initiated against him by the Income Tax department under the anti-black money law. Bhandari was accused of concealing overseas assets, making false statements to suppress information about overseas assets and using backdated documents.
India.com
14-07-2025
- Politics
- India.com
ED Grills Robert Vadra Over London Property Deals, Links With Sanjay Bhandari
Robert Vadra, husband of Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, was grilled by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Monday over alleged money laundering linked to two London property deals. Vadra, who has denied any wrongdoing in his repeated appearances before the ED, left after spending about two hours in the federal agency's office. Vadra refused to give any statement to the mediapersons after the proceedings. On several earlier occasions, he hit out at the ED for hounding him and stated that he had nothing to hide. The ED has alleged that the two properties in question are benami properties of Vadra, which he acquired in collusion with UK-based arms consultant Sanjay Bhandari. The two London properties are at Grosvenor Hill Court, 13, Bourdon Street, and 19, Bryanston Square. The ED treats them as proceeds of crime related to a money laundering case registered in 2016. The ED alleged that Vadra lived in the Bryanston Square property on a few occasions during his London visits. The properties under the ED's lens drew attention after investigators sniffed benami deals between Vadra and Bhandari. The investigation agency alleged that Bhandari renovated a property in London in 2009 using funds provided by Vadra. Earlier on July 5, Bhandari was declared a fugitive economic offender by a Delhi Court, a development which came within months of a British court's refusal to extradite him to India. Bhandari, 62, who fled to the UK in 2016, was declared a fugitive economic offender under the Fugitive Economic Offenders Act, 2018, paving the way for the probe agency to attach his assets. The ED filed a chargesheet against Bhandari in 2020 based on proceedings initiated against him by the Income Tax department under the anti-black money law. Bhandari was accused of concealing overseas assets, making false statements to suppress information about overseas assets, and using backdated documents.
Scroll.in
06-07-2025
- Business
- Scroll.in
Delhi court declares UK-based arms dealer Sanjay Bhandari fugitive economic offender
A Delhi court on Saturday declared United Kingdom-based arms dealer Sanjay Bhandari a fugitive economic offender in a case pertaining to tax evasion and money laundering, reported The Indian Express. The order was passed by Additional Sessions Judge Sanjeev Aggarwal of Tis Hazari court on an application moved by the Enforcement Directorate under the Fugitive Economic Offenders Act, according to The Hindu. It will enable the Enforcement Directorate to confiscate Bhandari's assets worth crores of rupees. Bhandari is accused of defrauding the Indian income tax authorities between July 1, 2015, and February 7, 2017, by submitting two tax returns in which he deliberately hid details about his foreign assets and foreign income. As a resident of India at the time, the 63-year-old was obligated to pay tax on all his global assets and income. In 2016, Bhandari fled India for London, despite a lookout notice against him. In October 2016, a case was registered against him under the Official Secrets Act after confidential defence ministry documents were recovered from his residence during an Income Tax department raid. The Enforcement Directorate had told a Delhi court in April that a court in the UK has rejected its appeal for Bhandari's extradition. In its application to declare the arms dealer a fugitive economic offender, the central agency claimed that the UK court's order had no bearing on Indian proceedings against Bhandari, reported ANI. Bhandari opposed the application, stating that his stay in London is legal, as the London High Court had refused his extradition. His counsel, Senior Advocate Maninder Singh, claimed that the Enforcement Directorate's plea was unclear, improperly filed, and did not meet the legal standards under the Fugitive Offenders Act. On Saturday, the court stated it was 'satisfied that Bhandari, against whom an warrant of arrest has been issued…has left India so as to avoid criminal prosecution', reported The Indian Express. 'Further, this court is satisfied that the total value of the schedule offence is `100 crore or more,' said Aggarwal. He added that the 'extradition attempt may have failed, but it will not make the accused an angel or immune to prosecution for the violation of Indian laws'. Bhandari has alleged that he had faced 'undue harassment and pressure' from several enforcement agencies to 'compel him to give false statements against the political opponents of the government'. He fled India due to this 'harassment', he claimed. Besides tax evasion, Bhandari is also one of the accused in a case of alleged corruption in the procurement of Pilatus trainer aircraft in 2009. In June 2019, the Central Bureau of Investigation had filed a case against Bhandari and unknown officials of the Indian Air Force, Defence Ministry and Switzerland-based Pilatus Aircraft.
Time of India
05-07-2025
- Business
- Time of India
Arms dealer 'linked to Vadra' now a fugitive
NEW DELHI: A Delhi court on Saturday declared arms dealer Sanjay Bhandari a fugitive economic offender, observing that failed extradition attempts does not make him an "angel or immune from the prosecution for the violation of Indian laws". The order, which was reserved by the court of Special Judge Sanjeev Aggarwal on May 24, was pronounced on Saturday. "Extradition attempt may have failed, but it will not make accused angel or immune from the prosecution for the violation of Indian laws. FEO proceedings are another way of making one come back to India to face trial by coercing him to return by attachment, confiscation of properties of such fugitive economic offender and proceeds of crime, and by disentitling the such fugitive economic offender from putting forward or defending any civil claim," the judge said in his 100-page judgment. "...this court is satisfied that Sanjay Bhandari is a fugitive economic offender under section 12(1) of the Fugitive Economic Offenders Act, 2018, and is declared as such under the above provision(s)" of the Act, he said. ED and I-T department had in the extradition proceedings claimed that Bhandari had undisclosed foreign income worth Rs 655 crore on which he evaded tax worth Rs 196 crore. The middleman in defence deals, allegedly a key factor in deals like that of trainer aircraft Pilatus, deposited huge amounts of money in bank accounts of overseas shell companies and also invested in properties in the UAE and the UK between 2009 and 2016. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like An engineer reveals: One simple trick to get internet without a subscription Techno Mag Learn More Undo The case against Bhandari has an important political dimension - his alleged links with Robert Vadra , spouse of Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra. Robert is also being probed for his links with Bhandari, who fled to London when multiple agencies started investigating him in 2016. The judgment came on the ED's application filed under the Act in 2019. The court said the "fugitive" tag is to an individual who has committed schedule offence or offences involving an amount of Rs 100 crore or more and who has absconded or refused to return to avoid criminal prosecution. This will allow ED to confiscate his properties anywhere in the world and bar Bhandari, who is wanted by Indian agencies in multiple cases, from filing or defending any civil proceedings in India. The judge dismissed Bhandari's counsel's argument that the UK high court's order disallowing ED's plea for his extradition makes him eligible to stay in London, and therefore, FEO won't apply to him. "The said argument is without any substance as the extradition failure will not make any difference as the extradition of the accused was one of the means to bring the accused to India to face trial in the said offence under Section 51 of the Black Money Act," the judge said. The court stressed Bhandari wilfully refused to return to face criminal prosecution, and said, "...this court is satisfied that the total value of the schedule offence is Rs 100 crore or more i.e. the schedule to the present FEO Act which is Section 51 of Black Money Act." The court also rejected Bhandari's contention that declaring him a fugitive economic offender entails very serious consequences, effectively amounting to economic death penalty. "Bhandari always has an option to return... when he chooses not to return to India, he cannot take the plea of avoiding all the legal consequences... In any case those who play with fire should be aware of its consequences," the court said.
Mint
05-07-2025
- Business
- Mint
Meet Sanjay Bhandari: Declared fugitive economic offender under FEOA, who fled to UK in 2016
A special Delhi court on Saturday, while hearing a plea by the Enforcement Directorate (ED), declared data-vars-page-type="story" data-vars-link-type="Manual" data-vars-anchor-text="UK-based arms consultant Sanjay Bhandari">UK-based arms consultant Sanjay Bhandari a fugitive economic offender under the Fugitive Economic Offenders Act, 2018. In their plea, the ED accused Sanjay Bhandari of money laundering and stated that he 'absconded' to the United Kingdom in 2016 following several investigative agencies began scrutinising his activities. After this, ED filed a criminal case of money laundering against Bhandari and others in February 2017. The Delhi Court ruling comes at a time when a UK court had turned down India's plea seeking his extradition. An observation in the UK high court's decision stated, 'Bhandari would be at real risk of extortion, torture or violence in Tihar jail, from other prisoners or prison officials." In 2016, Bhandari "absconded" to the United Kingdom via Nepal and an Interpol red notice was issued against him in October 2017. The ED and other government agencies sent two extradition requests against the fugitive businessman and it were certified by the then UK home secretary Priti Patel in June 2020. Bhandari was arrested by British authorities on 15 July 2020, but was released on bail pending extradition proceedings. In 2022, a Westminster court subsequently ordered his extradition to India. Bhandari then challenged this ruling in High Court, and on 28 February 2025, the UK high court discharged him in the extradition request. The court on 4 April even rejected India's plea for his extradition. According to the ED and the Income Tax department, Bhandari had undisclosed foreign income worth ₹ 655 crore, on which he evaded tax worth ₹ 196 crore, reported Hindustan Times. Also, Bhandari has been under CBI probe since 2019 on charges of corruption in a ₹ 2,985-crore deal to procure 75 PC-7 trainer aircraft from Swiss plane maker Pilatus Aircraft. Between 2009 and 2016, Bhandari allegedly deposited huge amounts of money in bank accounts of overseas shell companies and also invested in properties in the UAE and the UK. The CBI also charged him with allegedly laundering money for properties reportedly linked to former Congress president Sonia Gandhi's son-in-law Robert Vadra in London. In this, NRI businessman C C Thampi was arrested by ED in January 2020.
