Sameer Gehlaut round-tripped funds of Indiabulls through circuitous route into accounts owned by him and his wife
A day from the raids of Enforcement Directorate (ED), the Delhi High Court Tuesday sought response of the Centre, SEBI, and RBI on a plea seeking to restrain Sameer Gehlaut, the promoter of Indiabulls Housing Finance Ltd (now parked in London) from selling or transferring any further stake in the company. The bench of Chief Justice D N Patel and Justice Jyoti Singh issued notices to the Ministries of Finance, Corporate Affairs, National Housing Bank, Reserve Bank of India, Serious Fraud Investigation Office, Securities, and Exchange Board of India, IBHFL, and its promoter Sameer Gehlaut on the application filed by an NGO. The court listed the matter for further hearing on March 21.
The petition was filed by NGO Citizens Whistle Blowers Forum through noted lawyers Prashant Bhushan and Kamini Jaiswal sought to restrain Sameer Gehlaut from selling or transferring any further stake in the company. The NGO, through advocate Shadan Farasat, said Gehlaut has recently sold half his stock (amounting to 11.9 percent) as of December 17, 2021, thus bringing down his shareholding to 9.8 percent from 21.69 percent of the respondent company.
“It is pertinent to mention here that the Enforcement Directorate (ED) has already issued a request letter dated March 20, 2020, to the Deputy Director of Immigration, Bureau of Immigration requesting that a Look Out Circular (LOC) be issued against Sameer Gehlaut as he has been found to be involved in the Yes Bank money laundering case in case….Under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002 (PMLA) registered by the ED,” said the petition.
Indiabulls was exposed by BJP leader Subramanian Swamy in a complaint to Prime Minister and all agency heads in July 2019. In the petition, Swamy said that Indiabulls Group formed in 2004 has laundered and siphoned more than one lakh crore rupees by taking loans from Public Sector National Housing Bank. The National Housing Bank is fully owned by the Reserve Bank of India and under the connivance of many corrupt Congress leaders including former Finance Minister P Chidambaram and former Haryana Chief Minister B S Hooda, Indiabulls got huge loans for their real estate projects across the country. Swamy accused that Indiabulls was operating through several shell companies to siphon huge loans from National Housing Bank. Soon noted lawyers Prashant Bhusan took up the case to Delhi High Court seeking a probe.[1]
In early 2020, promoter Sameer Gehlaut buzzed off to London and did not appear before the Enforcement Directorate. Earlier days, he excused that due to Covid and Lockdown, he was not able to back to India.
Tuesday’s petition said that by selling his stake, Gehlaut was seemingly attempting to release or absolve himself of any accountability of his illegal activities as a founder, promoter, and director of IBHFL wherein he round-tripped funds of the company through circuitous route into accounts owned by himself and his wife.
The fresh application was filed in a pending Public Interest Litigation seeking an investigation by relevant authorities into the illegalities and irregularities in the dealings of the company, Indiabulls Housing Finance Ltd (IBHFI). The petition alleged that the promoters of IBHFI have been engaged in round-tripping of funds wherein huge loans taken from public sector banks and raised through IPOs was advanced as loans to various loss-making/ shell/ bogus companies of various business houses and as quid pro quo, part of that loan was routed back into the personal accounts of the promoter or his family members.
[with PTI inputs]
Reference:
[1] Subramanian Swamy charges Indiabulls of laundering more than Rs. 1 Lakh Crores. Demands probe by SIT and Special Audit – Jul 28, 2019, PGurus.com
PGurus is now on Telegram. Click here to join our channel and stay updated with all the latest news and views
For all the latest updates, download PGurus App.
- NIA confiscates Pak-harboured Khalistani terrorist Lakhbir Singh Rode’s key aide’s land in Moga - April 19, 2024
- Prime Minister Narendra Modi: A Gujju businessman who does not invest his precious time for a losing battle - April 13, 2024
- NIA arrests two accused Shazib and Taahaa in Bengaluru’s Rameshwaram Cafe blast case from Kolkata - April 12, 2024
