New Delhi
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has arrested Ashok Kumar Pal, Chief Financial Officer (CFO) of Reliance Power Ltd and a close aide of industrialist Anil Ambani, in connection with a money laundering case linked to a fake bank guarantee. Officials said Pal was taken into custody after detailed questioning at the ED’s Delhi office and will be produced before a court.
The case is part of the agency’s wider probe into financial irregularities involving the Anil Dhirubhai Ambani (ADA) Group. The investigation concerns alleged fraudulent transactions connected to Yes Bank and companies under the Reliance Group. The ED has claimed that Ambani and his group entities were involved in a ₹17,000-crore loan fraud case.
Earlier this week, the Bombay High Court upheld the State Bank of India’s (SBI) decision to classify the loan accounts of Anil Ambani and Reliance Communications as “fraud.” The court ruled that SBI’s decision followed legal procedures and rejected Ambani’s plea challenging the order.
The division bench of Justices Revati Mohite Dere and Neela Gokhale observed that under Reserve Bank of India’s Master Directions, borrowers are entitled to submit written explanations but not personal hearings. The judges concluded that Ambani’s petition lacked merit.
SBI had earlier marked the Reliance Communications and Anil Ambani loan accounts as fraudulent due to fund diversion and related-party transactions. Bank of Baroda also made similar declarations. The ED’s arrest of Pal marks the latest development in the ongoing investigation into alleged financial misconduct within the ADA Group.