India’s Enforcement Directorate (ED) has seized six properties worth about Rs 10.55 crore linked to top officials of real estate firm Ansal Properties and Infrastructure Ltd (APIL). The move targets directors, shareholders, and beneficial owners in a money laundering probe tied to serious environmental violations.
The ED’s Gurugram office took action under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002. These properties—mostly commercial spaces—are located in Gurugram (Haryana), Greater Noida (Uttar Pradesh), and Ludhiana (Punjab). They belong to key figures like Sushil Ansal, Pranav Ansal, Son HUF, and Kusum Ansal.
The case stems from APIL’s failure to follow India’s Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1974, and Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1981. The company runs projects in residential, commercial, and retail real estate, but inspectors from the Haryana State Pollution Control Board (HSPCB) found major lapses in two Gurugram developments: Sushant Lok-I and Esencia.
In Sushant Lok-I, APIL never installed a Sewage Treatment Plant (STP), instead dumping untreated waste into the local sewer system. At Esencia, the STP they did set up was too small and later left unused and unmaintained. These shortcuts harmed public health and the environment while letting the company pocket profits illegally.
ED investigators say APIL’s promoters ignored HSPCB rules on waste treatment, raking in Rs 10.55 crore in “proceeds of crime” from these ongoing violations. The agency started its probe based on HSPCB complaints, highlighting how such non-compliance in real estate projects fuels money laundering risks.
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