ED arrests Amtek promoter in PMLA case linked to Rs 25,000-crore bank loan fraud

A special Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) court in Delhi sent him to seven days ED custody after he was produced before it on Wednesday.

“It was alleged that loans were diverted through cheating, fraud and criminal breach of trust, causing a wrongful loss of Rs 673.35 crore to the banks. The Supreme Court in February, while deciding a public interest petition against the Amtek Auto group of companies, had directed the ED to investigate the case,” the spokesperson said.

“The agency conducted raids last month on the premises of Dham, another company director Gautam Malhotra and others in Delhi-NCR, Mumbai and Nagpur. The Amtek Group defaulted on loans exceeding Rs 25,000 crore taken from more than 15 banks. Amtek Group companies like ARG Limited, ACIL limited, Amtek Auto Limited, Metallic Forging Limited and Castex Technologies Limited along with other group firms were taken to insolvency, the resolution of which has led to a huge haircut of more than 80 per cent for the banks, causing substantial loss to the financial system,” the spokesperson said.

Dham, the ED spokesperson said, is the beneficial owner of several benami properties in various companies, with employees of the Amtek Group like peons, drivers, field boys and persons with no links to the group companies acting as directors of the firms. Dham, the ED said, continued to possess such properties beneficially held by him and never disclosed it to any of the banks or creditors.