Indore: ED presents charge sheet against Zoom Developers

The Indore unit of the Enforcement Directorate presented a preliminary charge sheet against Zoom Developers' company secretary Sharad Kabra under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) in a special court on Friday. Kabra is still in judicial custody.

The Indore unit of the Enforcement Directorate presented a preliminary charge sheet against Zoom Developers' company secretary Sharad Kabra under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) in a special court on Friday. Kabra is still in judicial custody.

According to sources, the charge sheet details the illegal transaction through which 1,280 acres of land in California, US, was purchased by Zoom Developers from M/s Green Square Property Corporation, Philippines, for US $7 million (or about Rs 44.44 crore).

The money used in the purchase was siphoned off from Indian banks. The ED on July 2 had issued a provisional attachment order for the land, which is now worth around Rs 1,000 crore.

Read: Zoom Developers' court documents question banks' role

While this is only a preliminary charge sheet, supplementary charge sheets are likely to be presented before the court at a later date, detailing other properties illegally purchased through the money siphoned from Indian banks.

Sources say Kabra had complete knowledge of the transaction and its illegality, yet he attempted to conceal the information from the ED.

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) is investigating Zoom Developers on allegedly siphoning of over Rs 2,600 crore from Indian banks, and four charge sheets have already been filed in the case.