Winning Bizness Desk
Mumbai.The Supreme Court on Friday issued fresh notices to industrialist Anil Ambani in an ongoing bank fraud case after hearing a public interest litigation alleging a ₹1.5 lakh crore banking and corporate fraud involving the Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group. The court has also sought a sealed status report from the CBI and the Enforcement Directorate within ten days, signalling a sharper judicial push in the high-profile matter.
Court seeks accountability, sets strict timeline
A bench headed by Chief Justice Surya Kant and Justice Jaymaly Bagchi noted that notices had been issued earlier as well, but directed the Registrar General of the Bombay High Court to personally ensure that the notice reaches Anil Ambani. The court ordered the CBI and ED to submit a sealed status report on their investigations within ten days, indicating dissatisfaction with the pace and scope of the probe so far.
Pil alleges massive corporate banking fraud
The PIL has sought a court-monitored investigation into alleged banking and corporate fraud amounting to ₹1.5 lakh crore by the Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group and its companies. Appearing for the petitioner, former IAS officer EAS Sarma, senior advocate Prashant Bhushan termed the case “the biggest corporate fraud in India’s history”. He argued that the alleged fraud dates back to 2007-08, but FIRs were registered only in 2025.
Key allegations raised before the bench
During the hearing, several serious allegations were placed before the court, including claims that investigating agencies had failed to probe the role of bank officials who allegedly facilitated fund diversion.
Key points flagged during the hearing included:
- Systematic diversion of public funds
- Manipulation of financial statements
- Delayed registration of FIRs
- Lack of scrutiny of bank officials’ role
- Limited scope of existing investigations
Properties worth ₹10,117 crore already seized
The court was informed that assets worth ₹10,117 crore have already been attached in the bank fraud case. These include Anil Ambani’s Pali Hill residence in Mumbai. The ED has provisionally attached 18 assets, including the Reliance Centre at Ballard Estate, fixed deposits, bank balances and unlisted investments. Properties belonging to Reliance Infrastructure, Reliance Power and Reliance Value Services have also been frozen.
ED flags fund diversion, control failures
The ED told the court that its probe revealed large-scale misuse of funds in Reliance Home Finance and Reliance Commercial Finance. Between 2017 and 2019, Yes Bank invested ₹2,965 crore in RHFL and ₹2,045 crore in RCFL. By December 2019, these amounts turned into NPAs.
Investigators found:
- Loans approved and disbursed on the same day
- Field checks and meetings skipped
- Blank or undated documents
- Funds diverted to other group companies
Political and legal scrutiny intensifies
The ED termed the lapses as “intentional control failures” and said the probe is being conducted under Section 5(1) of the PMLA, with attachment orders issued on October 31, 2025. The Solicitor General, appearing for the agencies, sought time to file the status report. With the matter now posted for hearing after three weeks, attention is firmly on how the court, probe agencies and regulators proceed in what is shaping up as one of India’s most closely watched corporate fraud cases.
