The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has officially announced that it has seized Rs 54.82 crore by freezing 13 bank accounts belonging to Anil Ambani-linked Reliance Infrastructure Ltd (R-Infra), as part of a Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA) investigation linked to alleged hawala transactions.

According to the ED, the action was taken for alleged contraventions of Section 4 of FEMA, which pertains to unauthorised transfer or holding of foreign exchange or assets abroad.

The seizure under Section 37A of FEMA allows the ED to confiscate equivalent domestic assets of an entity found to have held or transferred foreign assets in contravention of the law.

The ED alleged that R-Infra and its special purpose vehicles (SPVs) siphoned off public funds from National Highways Authority of India (NHAI)-awarded highway projects and diverted the money illegally to the UAE.

Allegedly, the company, through its SPVs siphoned off public money meant for project execution, routing these funds through bogus sub-contracting arrangements to shell companies based in Mumbai.

These shell companies were allegedly created using dummy directors and established in coordination with specific bank branches, enabling the layering and concealment of transactions.

The ED stated that after funds were transferred to shell companies, the diverted funds were layered through multiple accounts and subsequently remitted outside India to companies in the UAE.

The remittances were made under the guise of imports of polished and unpolished diamonds, without any real import of goods or any supporting documentation.

Allegedly, the recipient UAE-based companies which were found to maintain bank accounts in both the UAE and Hong Kong, are allegedly controlled by individuals involved in illegal international hawala transactions.

The ED alleged these shell companies were linked to hawala transactions exceeding Rs 600 crore, suggesting a wider network of cross-border financial manipulation.

The ED stated that further investigation is in progress to identify the beneficiaries and intermediaries involved in the fund diversion and to trace the ultimate destination of all overseas remittances.

The ED is also examining whether related group entities or officials played any role in facilitating these transactions.

The case pertains to a 2010 EPC contract awarded to R-Infra for the construction of the JR Toll Road (Jaipur–Reengus highway). The ED stated that the diversion of project funds caused “severe financial stress” to the SPVs, eventually turning bank loans into non-performing assets (NPAs) and causing losses to lending banks.

However, a spokesperson for Anil Ambani had earlier stated that the JR Toll Road contract was entirely domestic with no foreign exchange component, adding that the project was completed and handed over to the National Highway Authority of India (NHAI) in 2021.

The spokesperson also clarified that Anil Ambani served merely as a non-executive director of R-Infra between April 2007 and March 2022 and was not involved in the company's day-to-day management.

Meanwhile, Reliance Infrastructure stated in a regulatory filing to the stock exchange that it has received an ED order placing a lien of Rs 77.86 crore on the company’s bank accounts in connection with alleged FEMA violations.

It may be recalled that in November, the ED had summoned Anil Ambani for questioning, but he reportedly informed the agency that he was only available for a virtual appearance.