New Delhi: The Enforcement Directorate (ED), India’s financial crime investigation agency, has seized properties worth over ₹538 crore in an alleged money laundering case linked to Jet Airways (India) Ltd. The properties include land, buildings, and bank accounts.
The properties include 17 residential flats, bungalows, and commercial buildings registered under the names of companies and people, including Jet Airways’ founder Naresh Goyal, wife Anita Goyal and son Nivaan Goyal in London, Dubai, and some states in India.
The central probe agency attached the properties worth at least ₹ 538 crore under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, or PMLA, 2002.
The ED alleges that Naresh Goyal, the founder and former chairman of Jet Airways, and his wife Anita Goyal, siphoned off funds from the airline and laundered them through various shell companies. The Goyals have denied the allegations.
The ED’s case is based on a First Information Report (FIR) filed by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in May 2023. The CBI FIR alleges that the Goyals and other Jet Airways officials defrauded a consortium of banks led by State Bank of India to the tune of ₹848.86 crore.
The ED has attached the properties under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002. The PMLA allows the ED to confiscate the proceeds of crime, even if they are held in the names of third parties.
Here is a possible timeline of events in this money laundering case:
- May 2023: The CBI files an FIR against Naresh Goyal, Anita Goyal, and other Jet Airways officials alleging fraud and money laundering.
- June 2023: The ED initiates an investigation into the case.
- July 2023: The ED attaches properties worth over ₹500 crore belonging to Naresh Goyal and Anita Goyal.
- August 2023: The Goyals file a petition in the Delhi High Court challenging the ED’s attachment of their properties.
- September 2023: The Delhi High Court dismisses the Goyals’ petition.
- October 2023: The ED files a chargesheet against the Goyals and other Jet Airways officials in the money laundering case.
- November 2023: The trial of the Goyals and other Jet Airways officials begins in a special PMLA court.
The case is still ongoing, but it is clear that the ED is serious about combating money laundering and other financial crimes in the aviation sector.
The ED’s action against Jet Airways is part of a larger crackdown on financial crime in India. In recent years, the ED has seized assets worth thousands of crores of rupees in cases involving money laundering, corruption, and other financial crimes.
Also Read: Jet Airways 2.0 To Fly Again
Also Read News From Airline Industry: Air India Disinvestment, Tata Wins the Bid