PMLA Court Summons Wadhawans on June 13 in Alleged ₹34,615 Crore DHFL Money Laundering Case

Mumbai, May 29: A special court under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) has summoned Kapil and Dheeraj Wadhawan, the former promoters of Dewan Housing Finance Limited (DHFL), on June 13 in connection with the ₹34,615 crore money laundering case filed by the Enforcement Directorate (ED).

The ED’s chargesheet, filed recently, alleges that the Wadhawans and 15 other individuals laundered a massive ₹34,615 crore by diverting funds through 225 entities. The money laundering activities reportedly began as early as 2005-06. While Dheeraj Wadhawan is out on bail, his brother Kapil Wadhawan remains in jail, involved in another CBI case.

The ED's investigation claims that the Wadhawans used the diverted funds to maintain a lavish lifestyle, purchasing properties, paintings, diamonds, jewelry, sculptures, a helicopter, and even a 20% stake in M/s Varva Aviation. The special court also observed that the accused had allegedly used their employees to manipulate DHFL’s books by inflating home loan figures, which involved creating thousands of fake loans. These inflated accounts reportedly induced a consortium of 29 banks to lend DHFL large sums of money, which later reduced to 17 banks.

The consortium, initially led by Union Bank of India, had agreed to provide credit facilities to DHFL in July 2010. However, by July 2020, several banks exited the consortium, and the outstanding credit extended to DHFL had ballooned to ₹42,871.42 crore. Despite this, the group failed to fulfill its financial obligations, resulting in a loss of ₹34,614.88 crore to the banks.

The case has attracted significant attention due to the scale of the alleged financial misappropriation and the high-profile individuals involved. The Wadhawans are accused of orchestrating one of the largest financial frauds in India, leaving a deep impact on the banking sector.

The special court’s order to summon the Wadhawans on June 13 has intensified the focus on this high-profile money laundering case, with the ED looking to bring the accused to justice.