ED attaches ₹5,115.31 crore assets in Amtek Auto Group entities case

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The Enforcement Directorate has provisionally attached movable and immovable properties worth about ₹5,115.31 crore in the money laundering case of Amtek Auto Limited and others pertaining to a bank loan “fraud’ allegedly involving ₹27,000 crore.

Among the associated entities are ARG Limited, ACIL Limited, Metalyst Forging Limited, Castex Technologies Limited, and Amtek Group promoter Arvind Dham.

The assets include 85 immovable properties valued at ₹2,674.75 crore, spread across 13 different States, in forms such as large commercial properties and “prime-location” farm house in Delhi, 200 hectares of land in Maharashtra, hundreds of acres of land in Haryana and Punjab (Gurugram, Chandigarh, Rewari, and Panchkula), industrial and agricultural land parcels, residential plotted colonies, and flats.

In addition, shares worth ₹2,353.46 crore in both the listed and unlisted companies, have been attached. “Some of these companies are Alliance Integrated Metaliks Limited, Newtime Infrastructure Limited, Rollatainers Limited, Adhbhut Infrastructure Limited, Gourmet Gateway Limited, Barista Coffee Company Limited, and B S Ispat Limited,” said the ED, adding that debentures valued at ₹.87.10 crore have also been attached.

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The ED probe is based on the First Information Reports registered by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) following complaints by the IDBI Bank and the Bank of Maharashtra. It was alleged that loans were diverted, causing losses to the banks.

Also, on February 27, the Supreme Court — while hearing a Public Interest Litigation against Amtek Auto Group of companies, had directed the ED to investigate the case involving alleged bank fraud by Amtek Auto Group to the tune of ₹27,000 crore, said the agency.

The Court had “expressed concerns regarding the diversion of public money, emphasising the necessity of a comprehensive investigation by the ED, even if the banks concerned had settled the accounts”.

According to the agency, it found that the group companies named Amtek Auto Limited, ARG Limited, ACIL Limited, Metalyst Forging Limited, and Castex Technologies Limited, along with other group concerns, were taken to insolvency, whose resolution had led to a huge haircut of more than 80% for the banks.

“ED investigations revealed that financial statements of group companies were deceitfully manipulated to obtain additional fraudulent loans and create bogus assets and investments in the books of accounts,” it said.

In this case, the agency had conducted searches in June 2024 which resulted in unearthing a large web of “more than 500 shell companies deployed or used by the group to hold and invest in high value real estate and luxury properties, whose shareholdings were concealed in a highly complex structure”.

The ED said the shell companies were holding assets, whose beneficial ownership has been revealed to be with Mr. Dham, the main promoter and beneficial owner of Amtek Group, and was found to be alienating or transferring those assets. Based on the findings, the agency arrested Mr. Dham on July 9 under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act.