The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Friday alleged that Arun Nehru, Lok Sabha MP and son of Tamil Nadu Minister K N Nehru, along with his businessman uncle N Ravichandran, were involved in diverting a ₹30 crore bank loan obtained fraudulently by a shell company.
According to the central agency, the funds were misappropriated by Truedom EPC India Pvt. Ltd., a company with no prior experience in the wind energy sector, which was allegedly created with the sole purpose of obtaining and diverting the loan amount under the guise of setting up a 100.8 MW windmill project.
The ED said it conducted searches on April 7 across 15 premises in Chennai, Trichy, and Coimbatore, including those connected to the firm and key individuals. The agency claims that evidence points to Arun Nehru and Ravichandran playing crucial roles in orchestrating the diversion of funds.
K N Nehru, the Minister for Municipal Administration in Tamil Nadu, Arun Nehru, who represents the Perambalur Lok Sabha constituency, and Ravichandran, promoter of the real estate firm TVH Group, have not yet responded to the ED’s allegations.
In a statement, the ED revealed findings that suggest “systemic corruption” within the state’s Municipal Administration and Water Supply (MAWS) Department, involving fixed commissions, manipulated tender processes, and a network of politically linked individuals and officials.
The probe also uncovered numerous hawala transactions and a network of shell companies used to layer and siphon off the misappropriated funds. A portion of the diverted money was reportedly transferred to True Value Homes Pvt. Ltd. and TVH Energy Resources Pvt. Ltd. to settle pre-existing liabilities.
The ED stated that the project agreements were fabricated and no effort was made to repay the loan, which was later declared fraudulent. “Incriminating” documents, digital records, and property documents were seized during the searches, the agency added.
The money laundering investigation stems from a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) FIR that initially flagged the bank fraud involving Indian Overseas Bank. The ED is currently in the process of identifying and attaching assets acquired using the “proceeds of crime” under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).
Further investigation is ongoing to quantify the loss to the public exchequer and trace the complete financial trail of the alleged scam.
Sources By Agenices