The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has seized and frozen movable assets worth around Rs 59 crore after carrying out extensive searches at 14 locations in Mumbai as part of its money-laundering investigation into Rajendra Lodha and his associates, the agency announced on Friday, reported the IANS.

The operation, conducted on Wednesday under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002, resulted in the recovery of large amounts of cash, bank balances, fixed deposits and several incriminating documents, according to the ED. Digital devices and details of immovable assets allegedly linked to the suspected fraud—amounting to several crores of rupees—were also seized, according to the IANS.

The probe is based on FIRs filed by Mumbai Police against Lodha and others under various sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), 2023. These cases involve allegations of cheating, abuse of official position, unauthorised sale of assets, and fabrication of documents, which allegedly caused losses exceeding ₹100 crore to Lodha Developers Ltd (LDL), a publicly listed real-estate firm.

The ED said its investigation had uncovered a complex network of suspected financial misconduct.

According to the agency, Lodha was involved in diverting and siphoning company funds through the unauthorised sale and transfer of LDL-owned properties at undervalued prices to proxy entities and individuals linked to him, without approval from the company’s Board of Directors.

Investigators also found that Lodha and his associates had fabricated Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs) for land purchases at artificially inflated prices. The inflated components were allegedly siphoned off in cash through the original sellers, enabling Lodha to divert company funds for personal gain.

The ED said, “Investigation reveals that Rajendra Lodha, along with his related persons, associates and entities, accumulated assets through these fraudulent activities, causing wrongful loss to Lodha Developers Ltd.”

The agency added that further investigation is ongoing.

Earlier this week, ED had on Wednesday reportedly conducted search operations at multiple locations across Mumbai and Thane — including Worli and Dombivli — in connection with an ongoing money laundering probe in the matter.

According to ED sources, the searches were aimed at tracing the alleged proceeds of crime and identifying entities suspected to be linked to the transactions under scrutiny. Rajendra Lodha was earlier arrested by the Mumbai Police Crime Branch in September in connection with the same case.

A total of ten persons, including Rajendra Lodha, have been named as accused in the case.

(with IANS inputs)

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