PMC Bank Scam: ED Custody of HDIL Promoters Extended Till 24 Oct

HDIL Directors Rakesh (left) and Sarang Wadhawan (right).

(Photo: The Quint)

A Mumbai court on Tuesday, 22 October, extended the ED custody of HDIL promoters Rakesh Wadhawan and his son Sarang Wadhawan, arrested in connection with the Rs 4,355-crore Punjab and Maharashtra Co-operative (PMC) Bank scam, till 24 October.

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) produced Housing Development Infrastructure Ltd's (HDIL) Chairman and Managing Director Rakesh Wadhawan and his son before special Prevention of Money Laundering Act court judge P Rajvaidya, after their remand ended.

It sought further custody of the father-son duo to probe them further in connection with the scam.

The probing agency’s counsel Kavita Patil said the accused played a crucial role in laundering huge amount of money and were concealing material from investigation.

The money trail of proceeds received from the bank and properties derived from the same were yet to be ascertained, the ED said.

The court extended the ED custody of the duo till Thursday, 24 October.

The EOW earlier this month registered a case against them and top officials of the PMC Bank for allegedly causing losses to the tune of Rs 4,355.43 crore to the bank. 

It alleged that the bank management, in cahoots with the Wadhawans, concealed from the banking regulators’ scrutiny huge loan defaults by the HDIL group firms.

The Wadhawans were arrested last month by Mumbai Police's Economic Offences Wing (EOW).

The bank officials replaced 44 loan accounts of the HDIL with 21,049 fictitious accounts to camouflage huge loan defaults by the real estate group, it said.

The ED case of money laundering was based on the FIR registered by the EOW.