Money-laundering probe: 3 senior Religare officials booked in cheating case based on ED’s complaint
Mumbai police have filed a case against Religare's top officials, including Dr. Rashmi Saluja, for allegedly conspiring to obstruct a takeover.
Mumbai: Based on a complaint filed by the Enforcement Directorate (ED), the Matunga police on Friday registered a case of criminal conspiracy and cheating against three senior officials of the financial services firm, Religare Enterprises Limited (REL), including its executive chairperson Dr Rashmi Saluja, and a private individual, for their alleged involvement in getting a motivated FIR registered by the Matunga police in November 2023. The November 2023 FIR of Matunga police was registered based on allegations related to misappropriation of the firm’s assets made against REL’s two former directors and members of the Delhi-based business family of Burmans, who are REL shareholders.
Apart from Saluja, the recent FIR also named REL’s group chief financial officer Nitin Aggarwal and its president and general counsel Nishant Singhal.
ED’s complaint to the police was based on the findings of its money-laundering probe into the November 2023 FIR, which revealed that the accused officials had allegedly paid ₹2 lakh to one Vaibhav Gawali to purchase 500 REL shares worth ₹1.20 lakh, and the remaining amount of ₹80,000 was offered to him for filing a complaint with Matunga police against the Burman family.
According to ED’s complaint to the police, the same was allegedly done by the accused officials in a bid to prevent an apprehended control of REL by the Burmans, and to protect their Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP) shares worth around ₹179.54 crore. Gawali was named as an accused in the Matunga police’s FIR on Friday as well.
ED had on August 21 carried out searches at four premises in Delhi and Gurugram, Haryana, during which it froze the shares of CHIL (Care Health Insurance Limited) obtained in the form of ESOPs being held in the accounts of Saluja, Aggarwal and his wife and Singhal.
The alleged active role of Saluja, Aggarwal and Singhal in getting the FIR lodged, to block the change in ownership of M/s REL, pointed to a deliberate conspiracy to obfuscate the detection of the illegal gains made by them in the form of stock options of M/s CHIL, which is a cognisable offence committed under sections 420 read with 120-B of the Indian Penal Code, according to ED’s complaint.
The Matunga police had registered its case in November last year on a complaint from a REL shareholder, Gawli, who said he had purchased 500 REL shares at the price of ₹239 each share, all worth around ₹1.20 lakh in October 2023. REL is listed at the Bombay Stock Exchange and the National Stock exchange, he said. After his purchase, the shares’ price started falling, he claimed in the complaint given to the police. Gawli’s complaint was against REL’s former directors, who he alleged had connived with members of the Burman family.
As part of its probe, the ED had recorded the statement of the complainant, Gawali, on August 12, wherein he allegedly “categorically denied that he had any documentary proof pertaining to the alleged conspiracy of the takeover of M/s REL,” according to ED’s complaint. “He (Gawali) further stated that all the facts mentioned in the FIR filed at Matunga police station were based on the directions given to him by Dr. Rashmi Saluja,” ED’s complaint stated.
Gawali further alleged before ED that around 10-15 days before his purchase of the stocks of M/s REL, he had met Saluja, Aggarwal and Singhal who introduced themselves as officials of REL. Gawali alleged that he was given cash of ₹2,00,000 by the accused persons. Saluja allegedly even prepared a soft copy of the complaint against the Burman family to be filed with the Matunga police station, Gawali told ED. When the complaint was not registered as a FIR by the police, the complainant was allegedly directed by Saluja to approach a Kurla court and meet an advocate, regarding the filing of the said complaint.
Gawali told ED that as per his alleged knowledge, the purpose behind the November 2023 FIR was to stop the transfer of control of REL to the Burman family. Further, he was also aware that Saluja had been allegedly diverting funds in the form of ESOPS from REL and its subsidiaries. The purpose of the said complaint and the FIR was allegedly also to continue enjoying the said benefits which might have been discontinued if Burmans had taken over the control of REL, Gawali allegedly told ED.
ED’s complaint said that as per its preliminary probe, it appeared allegedly that the November 2023 FIR lodged with Matunga police was “motivated and based on apprehensions of a possible takeover of the group.” The alleged unlawful gains worth ₹179.54 crore were made by Saluja and others by acquiring the ESOPs at a price much lower, ED said. After ED’s August 21 searches, the REL had said, “The persons searched, the questions asked during the search and the ESOP Shares freezed are in no way related to the predicate offence.”