Now Reading: ED freezes Rs 51.75 crore of UAE firm in DHFL fraud case
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ED freezes Rs 51.75 crore of UAE firm in DHFL fraud case
The Enforcement Directorate has frozen about Rs 51.75 crore in a bank account linked to UAE-based Al Jalore Trading FZE as part of its money-laundering probe into the alleged Rs 34,615-crore loan…
The Enforcement Directorate has frozen about Rs 51.75 crore in a bank account linked to UAE-based Al Jalore Trading FZE as part of its money-laundering probe into the alleged Rs 34,615-crore loan fraud at Dewan Housing Finance Corporation Ltd (DHFL). The agency said the proceeds from the sale of a UK property owned by Vanita Wadhawan, wife of DHFL promoter Kapil Wadhawan, were routed to the Indian account of the UAE firm instead of being received by her.
The ED's Headquarters Investigation Unit conducted searches last week under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) and froze the amount. The money-laundering case stems from a CBI FIR filed on a complaint by Union Bank of India on behalf of a consortium of 17 banks. The ED alleged that DHFL promoters Kapil Wadhawan and Dheeraj Wadhawan conspired to cheat the consortium, which had extended credit facilities worth Rs 42,871.42 crore, siphoning off funds and causing a wrongful loss of around Rs 34,615 crore.
The ED examined transactions involving Hurtmore House, a UK property in Vanita Wadhawan's name, which was sold in 2026. The agency alleged that a purported loan agreement between Al Jalore Trading FZE and Vanita Wadhawan was used to create an encumbrance over the property, and the sale proceeds were transferred to the UAE firm's Indian account. The ED seized documents related to the transactions and said further investigation is underway.
Indian Opinion Analysis
The freeze of Rs 51.75 crore adds to the mounting assets the ED has attached in the DHFL case, which is among the largest bank loan frauds investigated under the PMLA. The core allegation is that the Wadhawan brothers used layered transactions through foreign entities and properties to launder funds obtained from a consortium of banks led by Union Bank of India. Under the PMLA, once an asset is frozen or attached as proceeds of crime, the burden shifts to the claimant to prove its legitimate source before the Adjudicating Authority. The next significant step will be the ED filing a prosecution complaint before the PMLA special court, which will set the timeline for the Wadhawans or Al Jalore Trading FZE to challenge the freeze order.
The case also highlights how investigating agencies are increasingly tracing cross-border asset movements in loan fraud probes, using mutual legal assistance treaties to access property records in jurisdictions like the UK.
Source: indiatoday.in
This brief was synthesised by AI from the source linked above.
