Under the terms of the PMLA, 2002, the Directorate of Enforcement (ED) has temporarily attached four immovable assets belonging to M/s Rosary Education Group and its partners Vinay Aranha and Vivek Aranha, totalling Rs 47.1 Crore.
The ED launched an investigation based on an FIR filed by Pune Police on the basis of a complaint filed by Shivaji Vithal Kale of Cosmos Bank against Vinay Aranha and Vivek Anthony Aranha, alleging that the accused obtained a loan of Rs 20.44 Crore from Cosmos Bank by submitting forged property documents.
The ED inquiry revealed that the accused received various loans, including auto loans, from Cosmos Cooperative Bank Pune in 2013-14 by presenting forged property papers mortgages and substantially overvaluing them to get loans for which they were otherwise qualified. Vinay Aranha filed false work bills under the premise of Rosary school restoration and received funds paid to phoney suppliers, which were immediately withdrawn in cash and returned to Vinay Aranha.
The ED conducted a financial trail inquiry and discovered that Vinay Aranha diverted loans and received crores of rupees in cash. Vinay Aranha had Rs 34 Crore in loans given to M/s Paramount Infrastructure, Shabbir Patanwala, Ashwin Kamat, M/s Deepti Enterprises, and others. All of these so-called vendors have acknowledged doing no work and have returned the money to Aranha. Despite many opportunities, Vinay Aranha has not provided an explanation of how the money was spent. Even in his schools, no revenue, spending, or income accounts were kept since 2012, and no ITRs were filed.
All of this was done on purpose to allow Vinay Aranha to syphon off monies according to his whims and fancy. Vinay Aranha admitted to lavishing big sums on celebrities and hosting gala events (in the name of the Vinay Aranha Foundation) for self-promotion, as well as purchasing many expensive automobiles. Throughout the ED inquiry, he was evasive and uncooperative, and he did not answer several ED summonses.
Vinay Aranha was detained under the PMLA on 10.3.2023 and is currently in ED custody till 20.3.2023. The associated properties’ current market worth is assessed to be about Rs 98.20 Crore. The associated properties are farms and school buildings held by Vinay Aranha and their family. Further research is being conducted.
