ED Seized Anil Ambani’s Properties Worth Rs.3,084 Crore in Money Laundering Case
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has attached more than 40 properties belonging to industrialist Anil Ambani and his family, worth ₹3,084 crore, in connection with a money laundering investigation. The case is linked to the alleged diversion of public funds by Reliance Home Finance Limited (RHFL) and Reliance Commercial Finance Limited (RCFL).
Properties Worth Over ₹3,000 Crore Seized
According to ED officials, the attachment orders were issued on October 31. The attached assets include:
- The Anil Ambani family residence at Mumbai’s Pali Hill area,
- The Reliance Centre in New Delhi, and
- Several residential, commercial, and land properties located in Delhi, Noida, Ghaziabad, Mumbai, Pune, Thane, Hyderabad, and Chennai.
Case Linked to Diversion of Public Funds
The case originates from allegations that public money raised through RHFL and RCFL was diverted and laundered through complex financial transactions involving entities connected to the Anil Ambani Group. Between 2017 and 2019, Yes Bank invested ₹2,965 crore in RHFL instruments and ₹2,045 crore in RCFL instruments. However, by December 2019, these investments had become non-performing assets (NPAs), with ₹1,353.50 crore outstanding for RHFL and ₹1,984 crore for RCFL.
The ED investigation revealed that Reliance Nippon Mutual Fund was prohibited under SEBI’s conflict-of-interest norms from directly investing in financial companies of the Anil Ambani Group. To bypass these restrictions, public money invested in mutual funds was allegedly routed indirectly through Yes Bank’s exposures, which then reached RHFL and RCFL. These companies, in turn, loaned money to entities linked to the Reliance Group, creating a circular flow of funds.
The ED uncovered a pattern of on-lending, diversion, and siphoning of funds to related companies. Investigators said that many loans were processed unusually fast, sometimes with applications, sanctions, and agreements completed on the same day. In some cases, money was released even before loan applications were filed. The agency also found several irregularities, including:
- Blank or undated documents,
- Weak financials of borrower firms,
- Lack of proper security or registration, and
- Mismatch in end-use of funds.
The ED described these as “intentional and consistent control failures,” suggesting that the lapses were deliberate.
Probe Expands to Reliance Communications
The ED has also expanded its investigation to include Reliance Communications Limited (RCOM) and its associated companies. The agency claims to have uncovered systematic loan frauds worth over ₹13,600 crore. Of this, around ₹12,600 crore was allegedly diverted to related parties, while another ₹1,800 crore was routed through fixed deposits and mutual funds before being redirected to group companies. The ED also detected misuse of bill discounting facilities, which were allegedly used to move funds to connected firms under the pretense of legitimate transactions.
