Ahmedabad, Oc1 1 (SocialNews.XYZ) The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has provisionally attached movable properties worth Rs 43.65 crore belonging to Electrotherm (India) Limited (EIL) and its promoters in connection with a money laundering investigation into alleged diversion and siphoning of bank funds, the central probe agency said on Thursday.
The attachment was made on September 25 under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002, by the ED's Ahmedabad Zonal Office.
The attached assets include Rs 25.08 crore lying in two bank accounts of EIL with Yes Bank and 13,57,775 shares of the company held by its promoters, valued at Rs 18.57 crore.
The ED investigation was initiated on the basis of an FIR registered by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI)'s Bank Securities and Fraud Branch (BS&FB) in Mumbai against EIL and its directors under various sections of the Indian Penal Code, 1860, and the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988, following a complaint by the Bank of India.
According to the ED, the case relates to credit facilities availed by EIL from the Bank of India between 2007 and 2013.
The agency said the company's outstanding dues stood at Rs 631.97 crore, while the account was subsequently assigned to Edelweiss ARC for Rs 550 crore, resulting in a loss of Rs 81.97 crore to the bank.
The investigation found that loans disbursed by the Bank of India to EIL for expansion were allegedly diverted immediately after disbursement towards repayment of existing liabilities, contrary to the sanctioned purpose of the funds, the ED said.
The agency also found that EIL transferred funds to various entities, which were subsequently withdrawn in cash in round-sum amounts shortly after being received, either directly or after being routed through other entities.
Cash amounting to crores of rupees was withdrawn from EIL's bank accounts during the period from 2007 to 2013, according to the ED.
Earlier, the ED had conducted searches at the premises of the company and its directors and promoters under the PMLA in January 2025.
The searches resulted in the seizure/freezing of assets worth Rs 38.32 crore, which was subsequently confirmed by the Adjudicating Authority under the PMLA.
With the latest attachment of Rs 43.65 crore, the total value of assets seized, frozen or attached in the case has reached Rs 81.97 crore, equivalent to the loss suffered by the Bank of India, the agency added.
The ED said further investigation in the case is underway.
Source: IANS
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