ED arrests Reliance Power CFO in 'fake' bank guarantee-linked PMLA case
New Delhi (PTI): The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has arrested the CFO of industrialist Anil Ambani's group company Reliance Power in a money laundering case linked to issuance of an alleged fake bank guarantee of Rs 68 crore, official sources said on Saturday.
Ashok Pal was taken into custody on Friday night under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) after he was questioned by the agency, they said.
He will be produced before a special court on Saturday and the agency will seek his remand for custodial interrogation, according to the sources.
The case pertains to a bank guarantee of Rs 68.2 crore submitted to the Solar Energy Corporation of India Limited (SECI) on behalf of Reliance NU BESS Limited, a subsidiary of Reliance Power, which was found to be "fake".
The company was formerly known as Maharashtra Energy Generation Limited.
The accused company, which allegedly operated a racket for providing "fake" bank guarantees for business groups, was identified by the ED as Odisha-based Biswal Tradelink.
As part of the investigation, the ED carried out searches against the company and its promoters in August and arrested its Managing Director, Partha Sarathi Biswal.
The money laundering case stems from a November 2024 FIR of Delhi Police's Economic Offences Wing (EOW). It was alleged that the company was engaged in issuing "fake" bank guarantees against a commission of 8 per cent.
The Reliance Group had then said that Reliance Power had been a "victim of fraud, forgery and cheating conspiracy" in this case and it had made due disclosures in this context to the stock exchange on November 7, 2024.
A group spokesperson said a criminal complaint was lodged by them against the third party (accused company) with Delhi Police's EOW in October 2024 and the "due process" of law would follow.
The ED sources had said that the Bhubaneswar-based company was using an email domain -- s-bi.co.in -- similar to sbi.co.in to create a "facade" of genuineness that the communication was being sent by the State Bank of India (SBI), the country's largest lender.
The fake domain was used to send "forged" communication to the SECI, they said.
The ED's preliminary investigation, according to the sources, indicated that the company also facilitated "fake" bills for commission and used multiple "undisclosed" bank accounts.
Suspicious transactions worth crores of rupees were done through these bank accounts, they said.
The company is a "mere paper entity" as its registered office is a residential property belonging to a relative of Biswal. No company records were found at the address during the searches, the sources had said.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
Mumbai-Pune Expressway ‘missing link’ to open on May 1; will improve travel safety: Shinde
Mumbai (PTI): Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde on Sunday said the long-awaited ‘missing link’ on the Mumbai-Pune Expressway, aimed at bypassing the winding Bhor Ghat section and improving safety, will be inaugurated on May 1.
Shinde, who inspected the project site, said the new stretch will make the expressway fully access-controlled, easing congestion in the hilly section.
Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis is likely to inaugurate the 13.3-km-long missing link, which connects Khopoli on the Mumbai side to Kusgaon near Lonavala, on Maharashtra Day, which is celebrated on May 1, he said.
The deputy CM said that 99 per cent of the project work has been completed. “I personally inspected the quality of work and found it satisfactory. The remaining minor works will be completed in the next few days,” Shinde said.
Shinde said the new alignment will bypass sharp curves and accident-prone stretches in the ghat section, helping reduce delays and improve commuter safety. He claimed accidents in the section would reduce substantially once the project becomes operational.
“The missing link project will make travel between Mumbai and Pune quicker, safer and more convenient, and will contribute significantly to the state’s development,” he said.
The Rs 6,700-crore project, developed by the Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation (MSRDC), includes two tunnels, high viaducts and a cable-stayed bridge over Tiger Valley.
The missing link will reduce the travel distance between Mumbai and Pune by approximately 6 km and shorten the journey time by 20 to 30 minutes, said officials.
Initially, only light motor vehicles and buses will be permitted on the new stretch to reduce congestion on the existing ghat section, officials said, adding that heavy goods vehicles will be prohibited due to safety concerns.
“There will be no toll hike because of the missing link project. No increase has been proposed at the Khalapur toll plaza either,” Shinde said.
The project comprises two eight-lane tunnels of 1.75 km and 8.92 km in length and two viaducts measuring 850 metres and 650 metres, said officials. It has been designed to bypass the old Khandala ghat section, a winding route that has long slowed down traffic and posed safety risks, said officials.
The 650-metre viaduct will feature what officials described as India’s tallest road cable-stayed bridge, with pylons rising to 182 metres, taller than those on the Bandra-Worli Sea Link.
Officials claimed that the tunnels have a width of 23.75 metres and are among the widest road tunnels in the world. An MSRDC official said the tunnel is likely to be included in the Guinness Book of Records.
The route runs beneath the Lonavala lake area and was executed in difficult terrain marked by heavy rainfall and strong winds, officials said.
Shinde said projects such as the missing link would boost access to tourist destinations such as Lohagad Fort, Visapur Fort and Karla Caves.
MP Shrirang Barne, former corporator Abasaheb Bagul, MSRDC Managing Director Anilkumar Gaikwad and senior engineers from executing agencies were present during the inspection, officials said.
Krishnamurthy Subramanian, executive chairman of construction and engineering company Afcons International Private Limited, said the journey to completion of “India’s highest road cable-stayed bridge” was challenging.
“The bridge, located in the Sahyadri region, presented extreme challenges, including narrow ridges that left little room for heavy machinery, sudden wind speeds reaching up to 100 kmph, and dense fog reducing visibility to a few metres. Despite these conditions, we are proud to deliver this engineering marvel,” he said.
The expressway, spanning approximately 95 km, holds the distinction of being India's first access-controlled highway.
