Vatika chairman, promoter held in Gurugram plot case
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Monday arrested Vatika Limited chairman-cum-managing director Anil Bhalla and promoter Gautam Bhalla in a money-laundering case linked to the alleged non-delivery of residential plots in two Gurugram township projects.
The ED's Gurugram zonal office took the two into custody under Section 19 of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002. They were produced before the Special PMLA Court in Gurugram on Tuesday and remanded to agency custody until October 3. Officials said the probe is continuing.
The arrests follow an Enforcement Case Information Report (ECIR) registered against Vatika Limited, Anil Bhalla, GautamBhalla, Gaurav Bhalla and others. The ECIR is based on multiple FIRs filed by the Economic Offences Wing of Delhi Police under Sections 420, 406 and 120-B of the IPC. The police cases alleged fraudulent inducement and failure to hand over plots that buyers had already paid for in full.
According to the ED, seven purchaser entities paid about Rs 260 crore between 2010 and 2012 as the entire sale consideration for plots in Vatika India Next in Sectors 84 and 85 and Vatika India Next-2 in Sector 88A. The company signed plot-wise agreements in 2014 and 2015. After that, the company revised layouts, renumbered and relocated plots, and allotted or sold the same land to other buyers.
In Vatika India Next-2, investigators said, not a single plot from about 1.10 lakh square yards purchased for roughly Rs 90 crore has been delivered even after 14 years. Delivery in Vatika India Next has been only partial. Plots worth approximately Rs 140.73 crore remain undelivered.
The agency said Anil Bhalla personally supervised the key decisions under investigation. GautamBhalla executed important agreements, held directorships, controlled land-owning entities and continued to run operations. The ED said the two took major decisions jointly.
The land for the projects was held through 22 group companies that had no staff and no independent business. These companies were used to issue corporate guarantees, hold the land bank and raise mortgages. Bank records examined by the ED showed that money collected from buyers was not spent only on the projects for which it was received. Funds were moved to other group firms and promoter-linked entities unconnected with those developments.
A later 2024 deal with Scaler Ventures has also come under scrutiny. Scaler paid Rs 473.18 crore under an agreement to sell and a buy-back arrangement covering 165 plots. Only 15 plots were bought back. Of the remaining 150, the agency alleged that 14 were sold to third parties for about Rs 13.62 crore without Scaler's knowledge or consent. Proceeds of crime quantified so far amount to about Rs 154.36 crore.
In August, the ED had already searched seven residential and office premises linked to the group. Officers recovered a Mercedes-Benz GLC 300, more than 1.3 kg of gold and diamond jewellery valued at Rs 1.55 crore, and froze bank accounts and fixed deposits worth Rs 3.04 crore.
Vatika Limited and the arrested promoters could not be reached immediately for comment. Homebuyers who paid the full price more than a decade ago say they are still waiting for plots that were promised, then shifted, and in some cases never handed over.
The ED has three more days of custody to question the two men and trace the flow of funds.
