ED attaches properties worth Rs 24.94 cr in Ludhiana bank fraud case

The attached properties include land, buildings, plant, and machinery of Pure Milk Products Private Limited in Alamgir village on Malerkotla Road in Ludhiana, as well as various immovable properties in the names of Bajaj and Kaur.

The ED initiated a PMLA investigation based on an FIR registered by the CBI in 2019, following a complaint filed by the State Bank of India against Pure Milk Products and its directors for forgery, cheating, and other offences, as well as misappropriation of a loan amount totaling Rs 60.74 crore.

A chargesheet was also filed by the CBI before the special CBI court in Mohali.

"Investigation conducted by the ED revealed that Pure Milk Products fraudulently availed loans from the State Bank of India by forging books of accounts and diverting the loan amount through various modus operandi, such as making payments to non-existing/paper firms/companies, purchasing immovable properties in the names of the directors of Pure Milk Products, transferring the amount to its sister concerns, and appropriating amounts towards the interest payable and repayment of car loans," said an ED official.

The ED had previously conducted a search operation in this case in December 2022 at 11 different locations in Punjab, which resulted in the recovery and seizure of property-related documents, mobile phones, gold coins, and cash totaling Rs 1.15 crore.