ED files chargehseet against Ansal Properties, its promoters

New Delhi, Dec 16 (PTI) The Enforcement Directorate on Tuesday filed a money laundering chargesheet against Gurugram-based real estate company Ansal Properties and Infrastructure Ltd. (APIL) and its directors Sushil Ansal, Pranav Ansal and Gopal Ansal.

The prosecution complaint was filed before a special Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) court by the Gurugram zonal office of the federal probe agency in a case linked to alleged violation of environment protection laws, the ED said in a statement.

Those named in the prosecution complaint include APIL, its directors and shareholders Sushil Ansal, Pranav Ansal and Gopal Ansal, the statement said.

The company or its promoters could not be contacted immediately for comment.

The case pertains to the charge that APIL did not install a sewage treatment plant (STP) in its project 'Sushant Lok Phase-I' and the effluent generated was passed through the Haryana Urban Development Authority's (HUDA) sewerage lines. In the second instance, the STP installed in its 'Esencia' project was of "inadequate" capacity, the ED alleged.

During an inspection conducted by Haryana pollution control board officials, the STPs installed were found "abandoned" and without any operation and maintenance, the agency said.

By not treating the domestic effluent and the sewage water according to the norms, APIL on one hand caused hazard to public health and environment, and on the other hand it kept enjoying the resultant profit, the ED said.

It said the promoters of the company "did not bother" to treat the waste or take any measures as per the state pollution control board norms and thus, unduly benefitted themselves and generated proceeds of crime worth Rs 10.55 crore.

Earlier, the ED attached commercial properties worth Rs 10.55 crore of the company's promoters and shareholders in Gurugram, Greater Noida and Ludhiana as part of this investigation.

The money laundering case stems from a chargesheet of the Haryana State Pollution Control Board (HSPCB). PTI NES DIV DIV