Probe Agency ED Seizes Properties Worth Rs 10,000 Crore In Money Laundering Case

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has provisionally attached 247 immovable properties worth Rs 10,021.46 crore in the PACL money laundering case, marking what is likely the highest single Provisional Attachment Order (PAO) in terms of both value and number of properties.

The action was taken by the Delhi Zonal Office-II under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002. According to the agency, the attached properties located in SAS Nagar, Rupnagar, Zirakpur, and Mohali are linked to an alleged large-scale financial fraud involving a collective investment scheme operated by PACL Ltd. and its associated entities.

The probe is based on an FIR registered by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on February 19, 2014, following directions from the Supreme Court of India. The CBI subsequently filed a charge sheet and a supplementary charge sheet against 33 accused, including individuals and companies, for allegedly operating an illegal collective investment scheme.

Investigators allege that over Rs 48,000 crore was mobilised from lakhs of investors across India under the pretext of the sale and development of agricultural land. Investors were induced to invest through cash down payments and instalment plans and were made to sign agreements, powers of attorney and other documents. In most cases, the promised land was not delivered, and around Rs 48,000 crore remains unpaid.

On February 2, 2016, the Supreme Court directed the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) to form a committee under former Chief Justice RM Lodha to oversee the disposal of PACL's land and distribution of sale proceeds to investors. However, further investigation allegedly revealed continued illegal sale, encroachment and misuse of land acquired using investor funds.

Three additional FIRs were registered by the Punjab Vigilance Bureau in Jawahar Circle Police Station in Jaipur and Attibele Police Station in Bengaluru. Searches in these cases led to the seizure of blank sale deeds, signed cheque books and identity documents, indicating attempts to siphon and dispose of proceeds of crime.

The ED recorded an ECIR in 2016 and filed a prosecution complaint in 2018, followed by supplementary complaints in 2022, 2025 and 2026. The Special PMLA Court has taken cognisance of all complaints filed so far.

With this latest attachment, the total value of movable and immovable assets attached in the case has reached approximately Rs 17,610 crore, including properties in India and abroad. Further investigation is ongoing.