Serious frauds unit may get Purti case

Armed with documentary evidence of serious violations in the business transactions of BJP president Nitin Gadkari’s family, the government is likely to refer the probe against 16 companies to its serious frauds unit.

Armed with documentary evidence of serious violations in the business transactions of BJP president Nitin Gadkari’s family, the government is likely to refer the probe against 16 companies to its serious frauds unit.

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The corporate affairs ministry, however, will wait for two weeks to get Purti Group’s response to the mandatory explanation notices served.

The ministry’s initial probe has thrown up ample proof of suspicious fund flow into the Purti Group, which failed to explain this to the Registrar of Companies (RoC), HT learnt.

Based on a discreet inquiry conducted by RoC’s Mumbai unit, the ministry on Friday directed it to seek a mandatory explanation from the 16 companies that either belong to Purti Group or are financially linked to it.

Sources confirmed that the ministry, which already put in motion the process of seeking mandatory explanations in accordance with the Companies Act, has cleared the decks for handing over the probe to the Serious Frauds Investigation Office (SFIO).

“There were instances of Purti Group companies’ equities being sold to private individuals and companies, for which cash payments — running into crores — were made. The source of the funding has not been explained,” said an official.