ED Expands Probe, Registers Fresh Money Laundering Case Against Anil Ambani and RCom Over SBI Loan Fraud Allegations
New Delhi, Sept 10: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has intensified its investigation into the financial dealings of companies linked to industrialist Anil Ambani, registering a fresh case against Reliance Communications Limited (RCom) in connection with an alleged ₹2,929 crore loan fraud with the State Bank of India (SBI), official sources confirmed.
The federal agency has lodged an Enforcement Case Information Report (ECIR), its equivalent of a police FIR, after taking cognizance of a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) complaint filed on August 21. Just two days later, on August 23, the CBI conducted searches at RCom offices and at Ambani’s residence in Mumbai, widening scrutiny around the troubled telecom firm and its promoter.
The ED’s case mirrors the CBI’s FIR, naming RCom (Mumbai), its director Anil D. Ambani, unidentified public servants, and others. The fresh money-laundering investigation will explore whether the alleged fraud involving SBI is interlinked with other irregularities across Ambani’s group companies.
According to SBI’s complaint, annexed to the CBI filing, RCom had an outstanding debt of over ₹40,000 crore to multiple lenders, with SBI alone facing losses exceeding ₹2,929 crore as of 2018. The bank accused the company of default and alleged that loans had been diverted, constituting fraud under applicable laws.
Following the CBI’s action in August, a spokesperson for Ambani said the allegations were dated and unfairly targeted the industrialist. “The complaint relates to matters going back more than 10 years. At the relevant time, Mr Ambani was a non-executive director of the company and had no involvement in day-to-day operations. It is pertinent to note that SBI has already withdrawn proceedings against five other non-executive directors. Despite this, Mr Ambani has been selectively singled out,” the statement said.
The latest case is part of a broader investigation by the ED, which earlier this year searched the offices and homes of current and former executives of Ambani’s group companies. In early August, the 66-year-old businessman himself was summoned for questioning, during which his statement was recorded.
The ED’s probe covers alleged financial irregularities worth over ₹17,000 crore, including suspicions of loan diversion by group entities such as Reliance Infrastructure (R Infra). Among these is a specific allegation of the illegal diversion of around ₹3,000 crore from loans extended by Yes Bank between 2017 and 2019 to Ambani’s companies.
Sources said the agency has already questioned several present and former executives of the Reliance Group, and more summons may follow. The investigation aims to determine the extent of liability, trace money flows, and establish whether multiple loan fraud cases across Ambani’s companies are interconnected.
The widening probe marks yet another chapter in the financial troubles surrounding the once high-flying Reliance Communications and adds further legal challenges for Ambani, who has been under regulatory scrutiny for years amid defaults and bankruptcies across several group firms.
