ED freezes Rs 103 crore assets in Bharath Lajhna case
The Enforcement Directorate seized luxury cars, gold, and shares during searches at 12 premises across Kerala and Chennai.
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) froze or seized assets worth Rs 103 crore on Wednesday during an investigation into the Bharath Lajhna Multi State Housing Co-operative Society Ltd, according to Urban Acres.
The agency conducted searches at 12 locations in Chennai and various parts of Kerala, including Ernakulam, Kozhikode, Thrissur, Thiruvananthapuram, and Munnar, under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act.
The seized assets include shares valued at Rs 80 crore, 7.4kg of gold jewellery worth Rs 9.6 crore, eight luxury cars valued at approximately Rs 7 crore, immovable properties worth Rs 5 crore, and bank balances of Rs 1.86 crore.
The investigation involves R Premkumar, whom the ED identifies as a founding member who also acted as the chairman and managing director of the cooperative.
The probe began following an FIR by the Kerala Police, which alleged that Premkumar diverted public deposits into accounts held by relatives and used society properties as mortgage collateral for personal gain.
The ED stated that its examination of about 320 bank accounts suggested funds were layered through multiple accounts to hide their origin. The agency said further investigation is continuing.