E-Paper
ED attaches properties worth ₹47.1 crore belonging to educationist father-son duo
The agency initiated investigation on the basis of an FIR registered by Pune police following the complaint by Shivaji Vithal Kale of Cosmos Bank against Vinay and Vivek wherein it was alleged that the accused had obtained loan of ₹20.44 crore from Cosmos Bank
Pune: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has provisionally attached four immovable properties worth ₹47.1 crore belonging to M/s Rosary Education Group and its partners Vinay Aranha and his son Vivek Anthony Aranha under the provisions of Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002, officials said on Monday.
The agency initiated investigation on the basis of an FIR registered by Pune police following the complaint by Shivaji Vithal Kale of Cosmos Bank against Vinay and Vivek wherein it was alleged that the accused had obtained loan of ₹20.44 crore from Cosmos Bank by submitting fake documents of property.
“The attached properties include lands and school buildings,” said an ED official.
According to the ED officials, Vinay was evasive and non-cooperative during the investigation process and did not respond to multiple summons. Arrested under PMLA on March 10, he is under ED custody till March 20.
ED investigation has established that the accused had obtained multiple loans, including car, in 2013-14 from Cosmos Cooperative Bank Pune by submitting fabricated property documents and mortgages and grossly overvalued it to avail loans for which they were otherwise ineligible
Vinay submitted bogus work invoices (in the guise of refurbishment of Rosary schools) and got loans disbursed to bogus vendors which were immediately withdrawn in cash and handed back to him. ED conducted fund trail investigation and found that Vinay diverted the loans and got money in cash.
Vinay got loan amounts of ₹34 crore disbursed to M/s Paramount Infrastructure, Shabbir Patanwala, Ashwin Kamat, M/s Deepti Enterprises and others. All these so-called vendors have admitted that they did not do any work and returned the cash to him.
Despite giving repeated opportunities, Vinay has not given any account of the utilisation of the cash. No details of income, expenditure and revenue have been updated at his schools since 2012 and no income tax returns (ITR) were filed, according to the bank officials.
According to the ED’s remand plea, Vinay has hosted events involving Bollywood celebrities and spent lavishly in purchase of several high-end luxury cars.
“The present market value of the attached properties is estimated to be around ₹98.20 crore. The attached properties include lands and school buildings which are owned in the name of Vinay Aranha and family,” ED said.
