Mumbai Crime: ED seizes properties worth Rs 904 crores of DSK Group

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The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Friday seized assets worth Rs 904 crore of DS Kulkarni Developers Ltd and companies of DSK Group for cheating and siphoning funds of more than 35,000 investors of Maharashtra. The assets have been seized under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002 (PMLA).

Under the provision of PMLA, the ED started the investigations on the basis of a First Information Report (FIR) and charge sheet of the Economic Offences Wing (EOW), Pune. According to the charge sheet, Chairman and Managing Director of DSK Group, Deepak S Kulkarni, group president of DSK Group Shirish D Kulkarni and others have duped investors by fraudulently collecting deposits worth Rs 1,084 crore in the guise of better return during the period from 2006 to 2017.

During further investigation, it was revealed that accused Deepak S Kulkarni, his wife Hemanti D Kulkarni and son Shirish D Kulkarni and others formed eight partnership firms namely D S Kulkarni and Company, D S Kulkarni and Associates, DS Kulkarni and Brothers, DS Kulkarni and Sons, DSK and Sons, DSK and Associates, DSK Construction, DSK Enterprises under the veil of DS Kulkarni Developers Ltd (DSKDL) with ulterior motive of collecting the funds from gullible public based companies in Mumbai, Pune, Kolhapur, and other cities of Maharashtra.

The accused have fraudulently projected these partnership firms to be part and parcel of DSKDL. Although, these eight partnership firms didn't have any profit generating business nevertheless the accused persons in connivance with others, dishonestly induced the public and collected funds from them in the guise of different deposit schemes through these eight partnership firms.

The money trail established that the accused persons layered and integrated the proceeds of crime, through various high-value sham transactions under the guise of capital borrowing and advances against property among 40 group companies of DSK Group. Also, the money was also laundered in the bank accounts of Deepak S Kulkarni, his family members, and close relatives.

The laundered money was further utilised to purchase the land in India and USA in different construction projects of DSKDL or subsidiary of DSKDL, for an operative expenditure of group companies of DSK group, repayment of Bank Loan, purchasing land and paying premiums of high-value Life Insurance policies.

The investigation also revealed that the DSKDL has purchased land at Fursungi near Pune with the total cost of Rs 332 crore between 2006 and 2009 for the development of a special economic zone (SEZ) project. However, in the entire land purchase dealing, the agriculturists got only Rs 147.85 crore and the remaining funds amounting to Rs 184.46 crore was siphoned off to the account of Hemanti D Kulkarni.

So far identified proceeds of crime consisting of immovable properties amount to Rs 895 crore situated in various in Fursungi, Kolhapur, Sangli, Solapur of Maharashtra, Bengaluru and in the USA. Bank balances amounting to Rs 4 Crore and LIC policies worth Rs 5 Crore to the tune of Rs 904 crore has been provisionally attached under PMLA.

Further investigation is underway.

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