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The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has lodged its first charge sheet in the ongoing money laundering investigation involving Chinese smartphone manufacturer vivo and other entities, according to official sources on Thursday.
The prosecution complaint was filed in a special court, invoking criminal sections of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA). vivo-India has been named as an accused alongside individuals previously arrested in connection with the case, as per the sources.
In the course of this investigation, the ED had arrested four individuals, including Hari Om Rai, the Managing Director of Lava International mobile company, Chinese national Guangwen alias Andrew Kuang, and Chartered Accountants Nitin Garg and Rajan Malik. The agency had alleged that their activities led to wrongful gains for vivo-India, adversely affecting India’s economic sovereignty.
The ED’s actions stem from raids conducted on vivo-India and associated individuals in July of the previous year, where it claimed to have uncovered a significant money laundering network involving Chinese nationals and multiple Indian companies. At that time, the ED asserted that approximately Rs 62,476 crore had been “illegally” transferred by vivo-India to China to evade Indian taxes.
Hari Om Rai, MD of Lava International, maintained that he had no involvement with vivo or its representatives since 2014, emphasizing that his company firmly adheres to ethical principles and legal compliance.
The ED initiated its enforcement case information report (ECIR) on February 3, following a Delhi Police FIR from December of the previous year against Grand Prospect International Communication Pvt Ltd (GPICPL), an associated company of vivo, its directors, shareholders, and other professionals. The FIR, filed by the Corporate Affairs Ministry, alleged the use of “forged” identification documents and “falsified” addresses during GPICPL’s incorporation in December 2014.
