The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has provisionally attached 126 immovable properties worth over five thousand crore rupees across Punjab and Delhi. The ED stated that the action was taken in connection with a massive financial fraud linked to PACL Limited, under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act 2002. The investigating agency said that the investigation was initiated on the basis of a case registered by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in 2014, for running an illegal investment scheme. According to the ED, the accused entities fraudulently mobilized over 48 thousand crore rupees from lakhs of investors across the country, under the pretext of the sale and development of agricultural land. The agency stated that investors were induced through misleading documents and payment schemes, while in most cases, neither land nor returns were delivered. The ED further noted that with the latest action, the total value of assets attached in the case has reached more than 22,650 crore rupees, including assets in India and abroad. Further investigation is underway.
