Mumbai: The special PMLA (Prevention of Money Laundering Act) court on Monday rejected the bail plea of Nihal Garware of Garware Industries, who was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) a few months ago. The case pertained to irregularities in a deal to purchase a property in Mumbai for the Jammu and Kashmir Bank. The detailed order will become available in due course.
Garware was arrested by the ED on March 22 this year on charges of money-laundering, as the agency suspected that he was instrumental in buying a property for the bank in Bandra Kurla Complex in Mumbai in 2010 at an exorbitant price. The agency claimed that Garware had received kickbacks to the tune of ₹12.82 crore in this deal.
The case was first registered by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on November 11, 2021, against Ackruti Gold Builders and unknown persons over allegations of corruption inherent in the act of purchasing the BKC property at a much higher price.
It was alleged in the ED complaint that there was sufficient space available for the functioning of the bank, zonal office and treasury, and any purchase of additional purchase was unnecessary. The ED claimed that the first advertisement was issued for 20,000 sq ft of land but the bank later ended up buying 63,776 sq ft.
“J&K Bank purchased a building, namely Ackruti Gold, for its zonal office at BKC from M/S Vishal Techno Commerce Ltd for approximately ₹172 crore. The additional director of the bank, Nihal Garware, was a member of the estate committee that decided on the purchase of the building. He was nominated to negotiate the prices with the seller of the property,” the ED said in its complaint filed last month.
The complaint further states, “Garware is not a resident of the state of Jammu & Kashmir. At the time of his appointment, he was a Mumbai-based businessman. His educational qualification was only a BA degree and he did not have experience of working in any financial institution.”
The ED claimed that its investigation revealed that Garware was appointed as an additional director on the recommendation of the Omar Abdullah government and was made a member of the estate committee on the very day of his appointment.
Garware had contended that the decision to purchase the property was not his alone and that he was not responsible for causing any loss to the bank. He also denied the allegations of money-laundering. The plea was, however, opposed by the ED, saying that there was evidence indicating his involvement in the deal.
