Shares of Indiabulls Housing Finance (IHFL) on Monday came under pressure on reports that the Enforcement Directorate (ED) has moved the Supreme Court challenging an order of the Delhi High Court that has quashed the ECIR (Enforcement Case Information Report) against the housing finance company and several of its employees.
The IHFL share closed at Rs 127.65 on the BSE, a loss of 5.69 per cent, after tumbling to a day’s low of 121.85 — a drop of nearly 10 per cent.
In February, the agency raided the premises of Indiabulls Finance Centre in Delhi and Mumbai in connection with money laundering allegations made against the firm and its promoter Sameer Gehlaut in April 2021.
However, they had said that the ECIR, registered by the ED, stems from an FIR filed by one Ashutosh Kamble, who reportedly claimed it was part of the long-running extortion and blackmail racket against the company.
Last month, Delhi high court quashed the ECIR registered by the ED against the company and several of its employees and directed that no further coercive action be taken against them in a case in which the Bombay high court has already quashed the FIR.
The high court also set aside the look-out circulars (LOC) issued against those employees and said there shall be no search, seizure or summons arising out of the ECIR.
Regarding the challenge to certain provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) by the accused, the high court bench of Justices Mukta Gupta and Anish Dayal had reportedly said that it has already been decided by the Supreme Court in an earlier judgment.
Referring to the apex court’s verdict, the high court had said: “....This court finds no reason for the said ECIR to be sustained against them, without there being any evidence of a predicate offence or an FIR against them which is in existence or is legally alive.”
The high court was dealing with a batch of petitions by IHFL, Indiabulls AMC and several of their employees challenging the ECIR registered by the ED and proceedings emanating thereafter.
