New Delhi— The Enforcement Directorate has attached an immovable property worth ₹150 crore located near Buckingham Palace in London in connection with an alleged bank loan fraud and money laundering case involving textile firm S Kumars Nationwide Ltd and its former chairman and managing director, Nitin Kasliwal.
In a statement issued on Wednesday, the federal probe agency said the attachment was carried out through a provisional order issued under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act. The high-value property is held under the beneficial ownership of Kasliwal and his family members.
According to the ED, Kasliwal is accused of defrauding a consortium of Indian banks of around ₹1,400 crore. The agency alleged that funds obtained through the loans were diverted overseas in the guise of foreign investments and later used to acquire immovable assets abroad.
The agency said that after attaching assets located outside India, it coordinates with counterpart authorities in the concerned country to take possession of such properties under criminal provisions of the anti-money laundering law.
The ED further claimed that Kasliwal routed the diverted funds through a complex web of private trusts and shell companies operating in offshore tax jurisdictions. Raids conducted in the case on December 23 led to the seizure of documents and electronic devices, which were later analysed.
Investigators said the probe revealed that Kasliwal created an elaborate network of entities across jurisdictions such as the British Virgin Islands, Jersey and Switzerland. As part of this structure, he allegedly set up the Catherine Trust, formerly known as the Surya Trust, in which he and his family members were primary beneficiaries.
The trust is said to have controlled a company named Catherine Property Holding Limited, registered in Jersey and the British Virgin Islands, which ultimately owned the London property now under attachment.
The investigation into the alleged fraud and money laundering activities linked to S Kumars Nationwide Ltd is ongoing.
