Rs 25 Crore, Jewellery Seized In Raids On Hero Motocorp CEO Pawan Munjal, Others: ED

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) said that they seized foreign and Indian currencies, as well as gold and diamond jewellery, collectively amounting to approximately Rs 25 crore

Enforcement Directorate (ED) seized foreign and Indian currencies, along with gold and diamond jewellery, collectively valued at around Rs 25 crore part from "incriminating" documents after raids on Hero MotoCorp executive chairperson Pawan Kant Munjal and others, reported PTI. The probing agency raided the residences and offices of the 69-year-old billionaire businessman on Tuesday. 

The Central probing agency in a statement on Wednesday that a "third party service provider" company, Salt Experience and Management Pvt. LTd. (SEMPL), "illegally exported foreign currency equivalent to about Rs 54 crore to various countries during the period 2014-2015 to 2018-2019 which was ultimately used for personal expenses of P K Munjal."

The Enforcement Directorate (ED), as per report, said that they seized foreign and Indian currencies, as well as gold and diamond jewellery, collectively amounting to approximately Rs 25 crore. The raids were conducted at the residential and business properties of individuals such as Munjal, Hemant Dahiya, K R Raman, and companies like Hero MotoCorp Limited and Hero Fincorp Limited.

The investigation by the ED is related to a money laundering case that originated from a charge sheet filed by the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI), which is an investigative arm of the Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC).

The investigation on Hero MotoCorp world's largest two-wheeler manufacturer in terms of unit volume sales, was started in June by the Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA) related to its association with a third-party vendor. 

In March 2022, the Income Tax department conducted raids on the premises of Pawan Kant Munjal and Hero MotoCorp as part of a tax evasion investigation, reported Mint. Adding that the Central Board of Direct Taxes had uncovered alleged illegal business expenses amounting to over Rs 800 crore and discovered records indicating the use of Rs 60 crore worth of "unaccounted" cash to purchase land in Delhi, along with the involvement of certain shell companies.

The company in an exchange filing on Tuesday ED raid said, “Officials from the Enforcement Directorate today visited two of our offices in Delhi and Gurugram and the residence of our Executive Chairman Dr Pawan Munjal. We continue to extend all cooperation to the agency,"