NEW DELHI: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has handed over properties worth Rs 22,280 crore attached under Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) to victims or their legitimate claimants, finance ministry has informed parliament.
The properties include Rs 14,132 crore returned to banks in the Vijay Malaya bank fraud case, Rs 1,053 crore in the Nirav Modi case. Recently, the ED handed over Rs 4,025 crore worth of assets attached in the Bhushan Power and Steel case to JSW, which acquired the company via the insolvency process in 2019. The ED has started the restitution of properties worth Rs 2,566 crore of fugitive businessman Mehul Choksi. The assets were attached by the ED in the PNB bank fraud case.
The ED has started the process of handing over the assets to the liquidator of Gitanjali Gems, the company once owned by Choksi. Under the legal framework of PMLA, the law stipulates that assets may be returned to bona fide claimants once a trial commences — specifically after charges are framed against the accused by the Special Court (PMLA).
“The ED has made major progress in restoring assets to the legitimate owners of properties. This achievement highlights the effective use of sections 8(7) and 8(8) of the PMLA, which allow for the restoration of assets to rightful owners when it is determined that the assets were initially acquired via illicit means but ultimately belong to innocent parties,” the finance minister informed parliament on Tuesday.