Mumbai: A special court designated under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) had on February 21 granted bail to Dewan Housing and Finance Corporation Limited (DHFL) Chairman Kapil Wadhawan in the money laundering case pertaining to three properties of the late druglord Iqbal Memon alias Mirchi. A month earlier, Dheeraj Wadhawan - DHFL's co-promoter had secured bail.
While granting bail to Kapil, the court had placed some conditions such as cash bond of Rs. 5 lakh. It had also directed that he must attend the agency’s office as and when summoned by the investigation officer.
Special Judge under the PMLA Prashant Rajvaidya further directed Kapil to surrender his passport to the investigation officer and prohibited from leaving the country without the court’s permission.
Kapil, 46, was arrested on January 27 by the Enforcement Directorate under the PMLA. According to the ED case, he was an ‘active conspirator’ in the money laundering case in which three properties belonging to Mirchi were sold to Sunblink – a firm linked with Dheeraj Wadhawan.
The agency claims that in 2010-11, DHFL had given loans to five shell companies amounting to Rs. 1500 crore, and by July 2019, the outstanding amount had reached Rs. 2186 crores. The beneficial owners of these companies are Kapil Wadhawan and Dheeraj Wadhawan.
The sole purpose of these companies was allegedly to siphon off public money.
Dheeraj is accused by the agency of being the ‘prime mover’ of a property deal between Sunblink - a company allegedly linked to him and late drug lord Iqbal Memon. Dheeraj claims he was not aware that Mirchi was a wanted man.
After DHFL had figured in the Yes Bank scam, where loans given to the company by Yes Bank had turned into Non-Performing Assets and ED alleged that the bank’s former CEO and founder Rana Kapoor had received kickbacks of Rs. 600 crores in exchange for sanctioning the loan, the Wadhawans were expected to be present before the agencies for investigation, but had gone untraceable.
Last month, a CBI court had issued a Non-Bailable Warrant against the duo.
The duo are still out on bail and the ED is yet to make a decision on a move to approach the court to cancel it.
