New Delhi: Today, the Enforcement Directorate seized assets worth Rs 40.34 crore belonging to businessman Avinash Bhosle and his family members pursuant to the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA). The properties were seized as equivalent value of foreign securities or properties owned by Bhosle and his family members contrary to FEMA, which allows seizure of equivalent value, located in India, of foreign securities or properties held outside India.
The seized assets are in the form of investment shares and preference shares held in Classic City Investment Pvt Limited, Pune, which owns three luxurious hotels in the five-star category:
– Hotel Westin, Pune
– Hotel Le Meridian, Nagpur
– Hotel W Retreat and Spa, Goa
Further, equity shares in ABIL (Avinash Bhosle Infrastructure Private Limited) and Rs.15 crore in several bank accounts belonging to Bhosle and his family members were seized.
The ED initiated the FEMA investigation in September 2017 against Bhosle and his family after receiving information that they had acquired immovable property in Dubai in violation of the FEMA of 1999. The investigation revealed that Bhosle and his family purchased foreign securities from the company Rochdale Associates Limited, Dubai, which owned immovable property worth AED 20,000,000 (roughly equivalent to Rs 40,34,00,000).
According to ED, for acquiring the property, Bhosle and his family members remitted the funds through the liberalized remittance scheme in their bank accounts held outside India
The company was declared to be engaged in real estate activity, however, the investigation disclosed that the company is not engaging in any business activity and generating no income.
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