ED moves court for Wadhawans’ custody

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Wednesday obtained permission to take custody of Rakesh Kumar Wadhawan and Sarang Wadhawan who were arrested earlier this month

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Wednesday obtained permission to take custody of Rakesh Kumar Wadhawan and Sarang Wadhawan who were arrested earlier this month for their involvement in the ₹4,335-crore fraud at Punjab and Maharashtra Cooperative (PMC) Bank. The two promoters of Housing Development Infrastructure Limited (HDIL), currently in judicial custody, may be produced in court this week.

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A special Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) court gave permission to the ED to arrest the Wadhawans who had previously been arrested by the economic offences wing (EOW) of Mumbai Police. The Wadhawans were remanded in judicial custody on Wednesday morning and in the evening, ED officials approached the court with their production warrant.

On September 30, the ED had registered a case against HDIL, its directors and group companies as well as employees of PMC Bank for offences under relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code. The ED alleged that the Wadhawans along with PMC Bank’s former managing director Joy Thomas and ex-chairperson Waryam Singh had illegally availed loans from PMC Bank amounting to ₹ 4,355 crore and cheated the bank and its depositors.

The court directed the ED to take custody of the two accused after necessary formalities. Among properties and assets previously attached by the EOW are 10 high-end luxury cars including a Rolls Royce, Bentley and Range Rover (seized from the residential premises of Rakesh Kumar Wadhawan); jewellery worth approximately ₹66 crore; an 88-foot long yacht; two aircraft (a Falcon 200 and a Bombardier Challenger jet) and two bungalows (one in Alibaug and one in Vasai).