ED attaches Rs 24.60 crore assets in Rourkela mall case
The Directorate of Enforcement provisionally attached property in the Pluto Plaza Mall involving Maa Tarini Industries Limited and others.
The Bhubaneswar zonal office of the Directorate of Enforcement (ED) has provisionally attached immovable property valued at Rs 24.60 crore in Rourkela. According to The New Indian Express, the assets involve a money laundering case linked to Maa Tarini Industries Limited (MTIL) and other entities.
The attached property includes parts of the ground, first, and second floors of the Pluto Plaza Mall at Chhend colony. The mall is owned by Pluto Plaza Private Limited (PPPL), a company under the control of Hanuman Khedaria.
The ED investigation began after an FIR was registered by the CBI and ACB, Bhubaneswar, against MTIL, its directors, and officials from PEC Limited, a Government of India enterprise. It is alleged that MTIL and certain PEC Limited officials fraudulently obtained Rs 19.40 crore for iron ore procurement by misrepresenting financial positions.
The investigation stated that funds from PEC Limited were diverted through the bank accounts of MTIL and Tathagat Exports Private Limited (TEPL). These funds were used to pay share purchase considerations to former MTIL shareholders, including Khedaria.
The ED said Khedaria and his associated entities received proceeds of approximately Rs 15.31 crore, which totalled Rs 24.60 crore including interest. The total outstanding liability to PEC Limited was approximately Rs 56.89 crore when the loan became an NPA.