Money-laundering probe: Enforcement Directorate attaches Ansals’ Rs 598 crore land in Agra

Gurgaon: Enforcement Directorate (ED) has provisionally attached immovable properties worth more than Rs 598 crore in Agra in connection with a money-laundering probe involving Ansal Properties & Infrastructure Ltd (APIL).The case pertains to alleged large-scale irregularities in the acquisition and subsequent release of land in Gurgaon sectors 58 to 63 and 65 to 67. ED said the Gurgaon land has already been developed and sold to third-party buyers and no longer retains its original physical identity. To protect innocent homebuyers and avoid disturbance to occupied projects, the agency has attached alternative immovable properties in various villages of Agra held in the names of associate entities and individuals allegedly acting on behalf of APIL.
The attachment has been carried out under provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002, the agency said on Tuesday, adding, its "investigation under the PMLA is ongoing". ED initiated its investigation on the basis of a CBI FIR registered on Jan 23, 2019, following directions of Supreme Court in a civil appeal. The FIR named various public servants and private builders — including APIL — and invoked sections related to criminal conspiracy, cheating and provisions of the Prevention of Corruption Act. According to ED, the land had originally been notified for acquisition for "stated public purposes such as development" by Haryana Urban Development Authority (HUDA) and creation of a land bank. However, most of the land was later released in favour of private colonisers through what the agency described "a fraudulent and collusive process". ED said its probe revealed that APIL entered into "collaboration agreements" and obtained general power of attorneys from individual landowners in respect of land already notified for acquisition. Investigators found irregularities in these arrangements.