Business

ED Attaches Rs 483 Crore Immovable Properties of Tayal Group Firm

In a recent crackdown, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) has attached immovable properties worth Rs 483 crore of KSL and Industries Ltd, a Tayal Group firm. The swoop took place on the Mumbai-based firm for alleged fraudulent appropriation of loans worth Rs 524 crore from Bank of India and Andhra bank way back in 2008, informed the ED official. KSL and Industries is involved in manufacturing of textiles and the Tayal Group has significant interest in textile sector through their various companies. The firm KSL and Industries Ltd is promoted by the family of industrialist Pravin Kumar Tayal and the agency added that the properties that were attached include commercially diverted land of 2.70 lakhs square feet besides a shopping mall in Nagpur. The ED is conducting the investigation under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA). The ED invoked the act as a sequel to three FIRs filed by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI). The CBI’s FIRs were launched against three different Tayal Group companies, namely Actiff Corporation Ltd, Jaybharat Textiles and Real Estate Ltd, and KKTL and Eskay Knit (India) Ltd. The ED officer said, "Our investigations reveal that these three firms have availed of loans to the tune of Rs 524 crore in a fraudulent manner. The victims were Bank of India and Andhra Bank.” The ED further stated, “These firms were into money laundering in a big way by creating a maze of shell companies. The shell companies that were created routed the funds to these Tayal Group companies. These funds were utilized for creation of assets in the name of KSL and Industries Ltd, Mumbai.” There exists a prelude to this in which ED attached Rs. 234 crore worth properties of the Tayal Group. The ED stated that Tayal Group laundered the funds obtained from UCO Bank rendering the loans as non-performing assets (NPAs). The ED put the total assets of the Group attached so far at Rs 717 crore. The ED concluded that a prosecution complaint has been filed on basis of the latest attachment before a special PMLA court. Investigations are still going on.