ED conducts searches in Himachal, Punjab against bizmen for FEMA violations

New Delhi : The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Friday said that on March 30, they conducted search operations at seven locations in Punjab and Himachal Pradesh belonging to Dinesh Soin, Abhishek Soin and others of Saber Papers Ltd, Ludhiana (SPL), for alleged violation of the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA).

Recently look out circulars had been issued against Soin and others of SPL on the basis of which the ED had initiated a probe.

The ED has claimed that the accused were allegedly acquiring, holding, owning, possessing and transferring foreign exchange, foreign security and immovable properties situated outside India.

During the search operations many incriminating documents in the form of loose papers and property documents revealing financial transactions between the persons resident in India, the business entities owned, controlled by them and the various business entities in India, Switzerland were recovered.

The ED learnt that Soin, and other members of the Soin family were the shareholders, directors of SPL and Saber Paper Boards Pvt Ltd, Ludhiana (SPBPL).

Further enquiry confirmed that certain wholly owned subsidiary and joint venture entities were incorporated in Cyprus and Switzerland respectively by the said persons and mandatory reporting required to be filed as per the FEMA provisions had not been made for considerable number of years.

The ED also learnt that Soin had invested Rs 9.7 crore in various entities in foreign jurisdiction and later had apportioned the assets and liabilities among those entities which revealed that more than Rs 120 crore worth of assets had accreted in the name of those companies in Switzerland.

“The Soins had remitted through banking channels only an amount of Rs 9.7 crore, reinforcing the suspicions that funds transferred from India through other than banking channels, had been infused in those entities,” said the ED official.