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The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has taken action by attaching three properties valued at ₹24.95 crore belonging to Pawan Munjal, Chairman and Managing Director (CMD) of Hero MotoCorp, in New Delhi. This action has been taken under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002.
The investigation was initiated by the ED based on a prosecution complaint filed by the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) under Section 135 of the Customs Act, 1962. The complaint alleged that Munjal and others were involved in the illegal transfer of foreign exchange currency out of India. The ED statement revealed that the prosecution complaint asserted the illegal transfer of foreign currency equivalent to ₹54 crore out of India.
According to the ED, the investigation uncovered that Munjal had foreign exchange issued in the names of other individuals and subsequently used it for his personal expenses abroad. The foreign currency was reportedly drawn from authorized dealers by an event management company in the names of various employees. It was then handed over to Pawan Kant Munjal’s relationship manager, who carried the foreign currency secretly in cash or card for Munjal’s personal and business trips.
The ED explained that this modus operandi was employed to bypass the limits set under the Liberalised Remittance Scheme, which restricts the transfer of USD 2.5 lakh per annum per person. The central probe agency took these actions based on the findings of its investigation into the alleged illegal transfer of foreign exchange.
