The Enforcement Directorate on Wednesday moved the Bombay High Court seeking cancellation of bail of DHFL promoter Kapil Wadhawan, who is an accused in a money laundering case, for violating his bail conditions and travelling during the coronavirus lockdown.
Advocate Purnima Kantharia of the Enforcement Directorate (ED) mentioned the application before high court Justice P D Naik.
The court then issued notice to Wadhawan and posted the matter for further hearing on April 23.
Kapil Wadhawan, the 46-year-old chairman and managing director of Dewan Housing Finance Limited (DHFL), was arrested on January 27 this year by the ED for his dubious dealings with gangster Iqbal, who died in 2013, and was booked under provisions of Prevention of Money Laundering Act IPMLA).
He was granted bail on February 21 by a special PMLA court in Mumbai.
Kapil Wadhawan, his brother Dheeraj Wadhawan and other family members travelled to their farmhouse at Mahabaleshwar hill station in Maharashtra's Satara district last week, in alleged breach of the lockdown imposed to check the spread of coronavirus.
Also Read
Subsequently, the ED on Friday issued orders for seizure of five luxury vehicles in which they travelled to Mahabaleshwar from Khandala.
The Wadhawan brothers and 21 others, including their family members, are at present in quarantine in Mahabaleshwar.
Kantharia said the ED sought an urgent hearing of its application after it came to light that Kapil Wadhawan violated the conditions imposed upon him by the special PMLA court while granting him bail.
"The accused (Kapil Wadhawan) was directed to appear regularly before the ED to ensure he does not leave the city. However, it was recently learnt that he travelled outside the city and thus, violated the bail conditions, Kantharia said.
She said this was an added ground for the prosecution to seek urgent hearing into its application requesting cancellation of bail granted to Wadhawan.
According to the ED, Kapil Wadhawan laundered money from DHFL as part of an illegal property deal with Mirchi.
It alleged that Rs 12,773 crore was siphoned off from DHFL on the pretext of providing loans to one lakh fictitious customers.
A part of this loan was used to make payments to Mirchi, who died in 2013 in London, the agency claimed.
As per the ED's case, Mirchis properties in Mumbai were sold to Sunblink Real Estate Private Limited, a company linked to Kapil Wadhawan and his brother Dheeraj Wadhawan.
Disclaimer: No Business Standard Journalist was involved in creation of this content