Shivangi Prakash-
Published on: September 14, 2021, at 14:59 IST
The Enforcement Directorate informed the Supreme Court on Monday that it had attached properties worth Rs 4.79 crore belonging to a former director of the Amrapali Group and was investigating his activities involving the diversion of property buyers’ funds through shell firms.
Additional Solicitor General Sanjay Jain, appearing for the ED, told a bench of Justices UU Lalit and Ajay Rastogi that the attached properties were the proceeds of crime of Prem Mishra, who was a director in the reality firm, and that he raised the money by diverting Home Buyers money from Amrapali Group using fake invoices, bills, and sham transactions.
The Court-appointed forensic auditor Pawan Kumar Aggarwal challenged the ED’s assertions, claiming that Rs 10.26 crore was owed to Prem Mishra, which was documented in the forensic audit and the Court’s 2019 judgement.
The Supreme Court ordered Jain to give the forensic auditor a copy of the ED’s status report and the attachment order of Mishra’s properties so that he may consolidate the information and submit a report later this week.
The Court ordered that an ED official who is familiar with Mishra’s case assist him(Pawan Kumar Aggarwal) in compiling the necessary information.
Mishra’s lawyer, senior advocate Vikas Singh, argued that if the case is going to Court, he should not be required to appear before the Enforcement Directorate.
The submission was objected to by Jain, who stated that his PMLA proceedings will continue as long as a case was filed.
Meanwhile, the Noida Authority has petitioned the Supreme Court to overturn a decision issued on June 10, last year, by which the Court set a limit of 8% interest to be levied by the authority on overdue property dues, as opposed to the exorbitant 15 to 23% previously.
The hearing will continue on September 20 if it is still inconclusive.
The NBCC had previously informed the Supreme Court that 10 projects in Noida and 12 projects in Greater Noida are now under construction, totaling 45,957 units at a cost of Rs 8025.78 crores.
On August 14, the Supreme Court ordered that booking for over 9,538 Amrapali project flats that are unclaimed, booked in the names of fictitious people, or are benami property be cancelled in order to fund stalled projects.
On the decision of the Supreme Court, Amrapali Group directors Anil Kumar Sharma, Shiv Priya, and Ajay Kumar are detained.
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