Rs 5,000-crore bank loan fraud case: Congress leader Ahmed Patel, his kin under Enforcement Directorate radar, says report

NEW DELHI: Senior Congress leader Ahmed Patel, his son Faisal and son-in-law Irfan Siddiqui are under Enforcement Directorate’s radar in connection with alleged ‘suspicious’ transactions in violation of foreign exchange laws at Vadodara-based Sandesara Group of Companies.

News agency ANI quoted ED sources as saying that Patel’s name surfaced during investigation against Sandesara Group of companies in a Rs 5,000-crore bank loan fraud case.

ED officials in November had searched the houses and other premises of Sanjeev Mahajan, a close aide Patel, and other businessmen in an alleged money laundering case involving the Sandesara Group of companies.

The ED on December 23 had filed a chargesheet against businessman Gagan Dhawan, arrested in connection with an over Rs 5,000-crore bank fraud.

The ED had alleged that he was involved in diverting the amount to purchase properties and other shell companies.

According to ED officials, Dhawan allegedly aided bank loan frauds related to the Vadodara-based Sterling Biotech company.

The ED had registered a case of money laundering following a case registered by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) against Sterling Biotech, its Directors Chetan Jayantilal Sandesara, Dipti Chetan Sandesara, Rajbhushan Omprakash Dixit, Nitin Jayantilal Sandesara, and Vilas Joshi and several others in connection with the bank fraud case.

In August, the agency searched at least 11 premises of the group in Vadodara, Ahmedabad, Mumbai and Delhi under the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA).

The central probe agency, in a statement, had said that the companies owned by the group were “indulging in transactions which are complex and suspicious in nature and are being routed through intermediary entities situated in and outside India”.

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