After Rs 3,000 crore assets, ED attaches Anil Ambani's Rs 4.5k crore Knowledge City

NEW DELHI: Continuing its action against Anil Ambani and his group entity Reliance Communication Ltd (RCom), ED on Monday attached Dhirubhai Ambani Knowledge City - spread over 132 acres in Navi Mumbai's trans-Thane creek industrial area and worth over Rs 4,462 crore - taking the total attachment against the businessman and his group to more than Rs 7,500 crore.Significantly, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) stressed that it is "committed to restituting proceeds of crime to their rightful claimants", an assertion that could lead to auction and sale of attached properties after taking clearance from courts. The agency claimed there is more than Rs 40,000 crore outstanding against Ambani and his entities, the money he had borrowed from domestic and foreign lenders since 2010-2012.

Banks have declared his group's loan accounts as fraud.As reported by TOI on Monday, in its first set of attachment orders issued on Oct 31 against Ambani, ED had attached properties worth over Rs 3,000 crore.

Some close aides of Anil Ambani's are also facing inquiry In its first set of attachment orders issued on Oct 31 against Ambani, ED had attached properties worth over Rs 3,000 cror, including his Reliance Centre office, worth over Rs 2,100 crore, at Maharaja Ranjit Singh Marg in Delhi, besides several flats and offices in several cities, including Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Hyderabad.

Some of his close aides and front entities are also facing investigation in connection with another aspect of the probe - an alleged rigging of the insolvency process of Ambani's bankrupt companies before the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT). Probe is still under way and key conspirators may be apprehended soon, sources said.Ambani and his RCom, Reliance Commercial Finance Ltd (RCFL) and Reliance Home Finance Ltd (RHFL) are among other group entities accused in two CBI FIRs - the basis of ED's probe under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).

A spokesperson for Ambani said, "Reliance Centre-Delhi and Dhirubhai Ambani Knowledge City at Navi Mumbai are RCom's assets, which are currently undergoing insolvency. Matters pertaining to the resolution of RCom are sub judice before NCLT and SC". The company distanced itself from Ambani, saying, "Anil D Ambani served as a non-executive director on the board of RCom and resigned in 2019."ED said, "Investigation has revealed that loans taken by one entity from one bank were utilised for repayment of loans taken by other entities from other banks, transfer to related parties and investments in mutual funds, in contravention to terms and conditions of sanction letter of loans." tnn