New Delhi: On Wednesday, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) executed coordinated searches at roughly 17 locations spread across Kolkata, Delhi and Bengaluru. The operation forms part of a broader probe into alleged contraventions of the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA) involving the engineering conglomerate McNally Bharat Engineering Company Ltd (MBECL).
The raids targeted premises associated with MBECL, individuals linked to its recent acquisition, and a network of related entities. The investigative thrust follows MBECL’s entry into the Corporate Insolvency Resolution Process (CIRP) before the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT), where the resolution plan put forward by BTL EPC received approval.
Focus of the Investigation
ED officials are scrutinising the origin of capital employed to secure control of MBECL, as well as a series of financial movements tied to the company. A key question under examination is whether the insolvency resolution framework was leveraged to facilitate an indirect re‑acquisition of control by parties who would otherwise be barred under Section 29A of the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC), 2016.
Evidence Gathering
During the searches, investigators seized documents, ledgers and other financial records, all of which are now being analysed to piece together the alleged wrongdoing. To date, none of the persons or entities whose premises were searched have issued a public response.
