Pawan Munjal Under ED Radar For Money Laundering 24.95 Crore Worth Of Property Attached
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has seized three properties valued at Rs 24.95 crore belonging to Pawan Munjal, Chairman of Hero MotoCorp, in connection with a money laundering case. This action follows a previous raid where the agency confiscated assets worth Rs 25 crore from Munjal. Cumulatively, the Enforcement Directorate has now attached assets totaling Rs 50 crore. Allegations suggest Munjal illicitly moved Rs 54 crore out of the country, prompting intervention by the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) and the ED.
Significantly, on August 1, 2023, the agency conducted raids at 12 locations owned by Munjal in Delhi and Gurugram. The operation yielded foreign currency, gold, and jewellery valued at Rs 25 crore. The money laundering case was initiated based on a charge sheet filed by DRI, leading to the subsequent raid. The DRI had filed charges against Pawan Munjal, along with Amit Bali, Hemant Dahiya, and KR Raman.
In addition to Munjal, the ED has taken action against employees of Salt Experience and Management Pvt. Ltd. (SEMPL). Allegedly, SEMPL facilitated the transfer of Rs 54 crore in foreign currency abroad from 2014–15 to 2018–19, purportedly for Pawan Munjal's use.
Investigations uncovered that SEMPL obtained Rs 14 crore in foreign currency through employees, including Hemant Dahiya, Mudit Agarwal, Amit Makkar, Gautam Kumar, Vikram Bajaj, and Ketan Kakkar. This amount exceeded the permissible limit of 2,50,000 USD. Furthermore, the company acquired foreign currency/travel forex cards in the names of other employees who had never travelled abroad.
During the probe, the agency discovered that a close associate of Pawan Munjal had transferred Rs 40 crore in foreign currency abroad. These funds were allegedly used for Munjal's personal and business-related travel expenses.
