ED arrests consultant in ₹68-crore Reliance Power fake guarantee case

Core Viewpoint - The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has arrested a third individual in connection with a money laundering investigation involving Reliance Power, linked to the issuance of a fraudulent bank guarantee worth ₹68 crore [1][2]. Group 1: Arrests and Investigations - Amar Nath Dutta, a consultant from Kolkata, was arrested under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) and is in ED custody until November 10 [2]. - Previous arrests include Ashok Kumar Pal, former CFO of Reliance Power, and Partha Sarathi Biswal, Managing Director of Biswal Tradelink Pvt Ltd [2]. - Dutta allegedly played a significant role in arranging fake bank guarantees alongside Pal and Biswal [3]. Group 2: Details of the Fraud - The fraudulent bank guarantee of ₹68.2 crore was submitted to the Solar Energy Corporation of India Ltd (SECI) on behalf of Reliance NU BESS Ltd, a subsidiary of Reliance Power [4]. - The guarantee was falsely issued by FirstRand Bank in Manila, which does not have a branch in the Philippines, leading to a loss of over ₹100 crore for SECI [4]. - Biswal Tradelink is accused of operating a scheme to issue fake bank guarantees to corporate clients for a commission of approximately 8% [5]. Group 3: Background and Company Response - The money laundering case originated from an FIR filed by the Delhi Police's Economic Offences Wing (EOW) in November 2024, alleging large-scale forgery and cheating [6]. - The fraudulent activities included the use of a deceptive email domain resembling that of the State Bank of India to mislead recipients [7]. - Reliance Power claims to be a victim of fraud and has filed a criminal complaint against the accused parties, asserting that Anil Ambani has not been involved with the company for over three and a half years [8].