Delhi, Oct 16 – A Delhi court has ordered that Ashok Kumar Pal, a senior executive of the Reliance Group and former chief financial officer of Reliance Power, be taken into judicial custody. The move comes as the Enforcement Directorate (ED) continues its money‑laundering probe.
Pal, who worked closely with industrialist Anil Ambani, quit his role at Reliance Power after being taken into custody. The ED linked him to a fake bank guarantee case involving the ADA Group, which was once headed by Ambani.
The case centres on financial misconduct that ties the ADA Group, Yes Bank and other companies to a loan fraud scheme. According to the ED, Anil Ambani and Reliance Group entities are accused of a Rs 17,000‑crore loan scam. The agency is also looking into possible violations of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).
Under a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) complaint, the ED suspects that Yes Bank disbursed about Rs 3,000 crore in loans between 2017 and 2019 that were later misused. The agency says Pal played a key role in diverting company funds and submitting fake bank guarantees worth over Rs 68 crore to the Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI), aiming to defraud a public sector entity.
In July, the ED carried out a major operation, searching 35 sites linked to the Reliance Group. The raid targeted more than 50 companies and 25 individuals believed to be tied to the investigation.
Pal’s arrest rattled the market. Shares of Reliance Group companies fell sharply earlier this week. Reliance Power slid more than 5 % to Rs 46.10 on the NSE, while Reliance Infrastructure dipped before recovering part of the loss by close of business.
Source: ianslive
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