ED records Tina Ambani’s statement in FEMA violations

The Pandora Papers had allegedly revealed that Ambani, and his representatives, were linked to at least 18 offshore entities, including Batiste Unlimited and Radium Unlimited. The firms were allegedly set up between 2007 and 2010, and seven of them were alleged to have borrowed and invested huge funds.

MUMBAI: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Tuesday recorded the statement of Tina Ambani, wife of Reliance ADA Group (ADAG) chairman Anil Ambani, over alleged FEMA (Foreign Exchange Management Act) violations linked to certain transactions revealed by the ‘Pandora Papers’ that surfaced in October 2021.

Tina Ambani Ht Photo : Satish Bate - 29/03/08

The ‘Pandora Papers’ had referred to leak of huge financial records in offshore tax havens globally.

Tina Ambani arrived at the agency’s south Mumbai office at around 10 am and was there for around four hours. She left the office around 2 pm. The agency had also quizzed Anil for around eight hours on Monday in the same FEMA investigation. The agency questioned the couple in connection with allegations contained against them, and their associates in the ‘Pandora Papers’.

The Pandora Papers had allegedly revealed that Ambani, and his representatives, were linked to at least 18 offshore entities, including Batiste Unlimited and Radium Unlimited.

The firms were allegedly set up between 2007 and 2010, and seven of them were alleged to have borrowed and invested huge funds.

Tina was quizzed about her association with alleged transactions related to one of the 18 offshore entities, ED sources said.

The Ambani couple has denied any wrongdoing, the sources said. When contacted by HT, an ADAG spokesperson declined to offer any comment on Tuesday about the ED’s probe.

The agency is scanning transactions related to investments / loans and has sought details as part of its verification, the sources said. ED sources said they are verifying FEMA contravention linked to alleged transactions, which could be up to ₹2,000 crore. The ED is verifying allegations that Anil brought in substantial amount of money to India around 2007 in the mode of foreign direct investment in his firms, which according to its initial assessment could be up to ₹2,000 crore though they are yet to be quantified.

It is being scanned by the ED whether these funds were allegedly raised as loans abroad but brought into India as investments via banking channels and about the nature of funds subsequently sent abroad as repayments, ED sources said. ED’s probe is determining the nature of the funds that were brought in as well as the actual destination of the repayment funds, to decide on the future course of action, the sources said.

Hundreds of well-heeled Indians, including businessmen, had featured in the ‘Pandora Papers’ that uncovered their overseas assets. The ‘Pandora Papers’ had made revelations with respect to current and former world leaders, politicians, and public officials in 91 countries and territories.

In a separate investigation, the ED had in March 2020, quizzed Ambani over his group’s alleged loan exposure worth around to the then crisis-ridden Yes Bank.

According to the ED sources, Ambani was asked information related to his group firm’s loan transactions with Yes Bank, the repayments against loans and the type of security and collateral that were given, among other things.

According to sources, Ambani had maintained that the debt from the bank was fully secured and was taken in course of regular banking transactions and denied any irregularity. The agency had recorded his statement as part of its wider probe into Yes Bank’s founder Rana Kapoor’s allegedly suspicious transactions in 2018 with the Dewan Housing Finance Corporation Limited.