ED attaches 4.5 crore worth Delhi asset involving Sanjay Bhandari

New Delhi: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Wednesday said it has attached an immovable property located in Delhi, worth Rs 4.5 crore, in connection with a money laundering case probe against alleged middleman and arms dealer Sanjay Bhandari.

The investigation pertains to alleged corruption in the purchase of 75 Pilatus basic trainer aircraft for the Indian Air Force (IAF) in 2009.

The assets belongs to Sharan Svadha LLP, an entity beneficially owned by Bimal Sareen and his wife, the federal agency said in a statement.

Sareen is stated to be a "partner" of Bhandari. Bhandari is in the United Kingdom at present.

The home secretary of the UK, in January this year, had ordered the extradition of Bhandari to India so that he can face charges of money laundering and tax evasion being probed by the ED and the Income-Tax department respectively.

A provisional order for attaching the assets has been issued under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), it said.

A probe found, the ED said, Pilatus Aircraft Ltd, Switzerland entered into a "criminal conspiracy with Sanjay Bhandari, his partner Bimal Sareen and others for obtaining the contract of supply of 75 basic trainer aircraft to Indian Air Force." "In pursuance of this conspiracy, commission/kickbacks (proceeds of crime) of Rs 343 crore from M/s Pilatus Aircraft Ltd, Switzerland were received in the bank accounts of the companies controlled or beneficially owned by Sanjay Bhandari in India and the UAE for influencing the process of contract in its favour," it alleged.

A part of this commission/kickbacks, the ED said, were transferred to Sharan Svadha LLP, an entity "beneficially owned" by Sareen and his wife, for purchasing an immovable property in Delhi which has now been attached.

Bhandari, who was residing in India for tax purposes in 2015, is accused of concealing overseas assets, using backdated documents, benefiting from the assets not declared to the Indian tax authorities, and then falsely informing the authorities that he did not possess any overseas assets.

He, however, has denied these allegations.