ED arrests Malvinder Singh, former Fortis promoter, in money laundering case

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Thursday (November 14) arrested former Fortis Healthcare promoter Malvinder Singh and former CMD of Religare Enterprises Ltd Sunil Godhwani in a money-laundering case in connection with alleged misappropriation of funds of Religare Finvest Ltd (RFL).

The ED took both the businessmen in its custody at Tihar Jail, where they are lodged in a case filed by the Delhi Police in relation to the scam, according to a lawyer associated with the case.

Also read: Delhi court sends Malvinder, Shivinder Singh to 14-day judicial custody

Singh and Godhwani will be produced before a metropolitan magistrate in the prison, when the Enforcement Directorate will seek their custodial interrogation.

The industrialists are accused of laundering money, punishable under Sections 3 and 4 of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, the central investigative agency said.

Also read: How the Singh brothers of Ranbaxy and Religare lost their billions

In October, a Delhi court had sent the two brothers Malvinder Singh and Shivinder Singh arrested in an alleged fraud case to four days of police custody, observing their offence was of a “very serious nature”, even as the latter moved the Delhi High Court to quash the FIR against him.

The Singh siblings, who are former promoters of Fortis Healthcare and Ranbaxy Laboratories, have fought multiple legal battles in three different courts.

While the Delhi high court reserved the order on whether to issue a notice to the police and the Centre on the plea of Malvinder to quash the FIR, a trial court had sent him, his younger brother Shivinder and three others to police custody after they were arrested for allegedly misappropriating funds of Religare Finvest Ltd (RFL), causing it to incur losses of Rs 2,397 crore.

(With inputs from agencies)