2G Scam: ED Orders Freezing of 5 Cos’ Bank Accounts

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Tuesday ordered the freezing of bank accounts and attachment of immovable properties worth . 222 crore of five companies in connection with the alleged . 200-crore bribe paid to Kalaignar TV in the 2G spectrum allocation scam. 

Dynamix Realty's and Conwood Construction's properties worth . 134 crore and . 22 crore have been attached respectively. Nihar Construction's properties worth . 1.1 crore, DB Realty's assets worth . 52 crore and Eversmile Construction's properties amounting to . 13 crore are to be attached. 
When contacted, representatives of the construction companies said they were awaiting the order. ED has made the CBI chargesheet in this regard as the basis for this order. "As per the charge sheets of CBI, a bribe of . 200 crore was given by Swan Telecom (now Etisalat DB) to Kalaignar TV through a number of intermediary companies in the garb of a loan or share application money. However, the same was returned to Dynamix Realty (a company of Shahid Usman Balwa and Vinod Goenka)," ED officials alleged. 
"The details of the charge sheet show disclosures made by the intermediary companies in the movement of the bribe money under the garb of loan or share application money do not substantiate a genuine and bonafide financial transaction," they said. 
The order has been issued on a probe report by the investigating officer of the case Rajeshwar Singh. The companies can challenge the order before appellate authority for Prevention of Money Laundering (PMLA) cases that is based in Delhi.