ED attaches assets worth ₹67.79 crore in money laundering case against Corporate Power Ltd

The ED has attached assets worth ₹67.79 crore linked to Corporate Power Limited and its promoters in a money laundering probe, totaling ₹503.16 crore seized.

MUMBAI: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has provisionally attached movable and immovable assets valued at ₹67.79 crore in connection with its money laundering investigation against M/s Corporate Power Limited and its promoters-directors Manoj Jayaswal, Abhijeet Jayaswal, Abhishek Jayaswal, and others.

ED attaches assets worth ₹67.79 crore in money laundering case against Corporate Power Ltd

The attachment, made under provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002, includes bank balances, land parcels, buildings, flats and commercial spaces spread across Maharashtra, Kolkata, Delhi and Andhra Pradesh.

According to sources, the order was issued on October 16 after investigators found that the assets had been acquired using proceeds of crime (PoC) in the names of Manoj Jayaswal, his family members, shell companies controlled by him, and his associates including Santosh Jain, who is alleged to have actively assisted in laundering the PoC, and their relatives.

The ED’s probe stems from an FIR registered by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) against Corporate Power Limited, its promoters and others, based on a complaint by Union Bank of India. The bank had alleged that the company- promoted as a special purpose vehicle by the Abhijeet Group- was sanctioned multiple credit facilities to set up a 1,080 MW coal-based power project in Jharkhand.

The promoters allegedly submitted manipulated project cost statements to obtain loans and then diverted the funds for unauthorised purposes. The accounts subsequently turned non-performing assets (NPAs) in 2013–14, causing a wrongful loss of ₹4,037 crore ( ₹11,379 crore including interest) to the bank.

Investigations by the ED revealed that over 800 shell companies and more than 5,000 bank accounts were used to siphon and launder the loan funds.

Earlier, the agency had conducted search operations at multiple locations in Nagpur, Kolkata and Visakhapatnam, seizing several documents, digital devices, records and cash. With the latest attachment, the ED has so far attached, frozen, or seized assets worth ₹503.16 crore in the case.