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ED Arrests Third Accused in Reliance Power ‘Fake’ Bank Guarantee Case

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has made a third arrest in its ongoing money laundering probe linked to an alleged Rs68.2 crore fake bank guarantee issued on behalf of Reliance Power, part of the Anil Ambani-led Reliance Group.

Officials confirmed that Amar Nath Dutta, a Kolkata-based consultant, was taken into custody on Thursday under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA). He was presented before a special court, which remanded him to ED custody until November 10.

This latest development follows the arrests of Ashok Kumar Pal, former Chief Financial Officer of Reliance Power, and Partha Sarathi Biswal, Managing Director of Biswal Tradelink Pvt. Ltd., an Odisha-based firm accused of facilitating the fraudulent transaction.

Forged Financial Trail

According to the ED, Dutta, who claimed to provide consultancy services in trade financing, worked in coordination with Pal and Biswal to arrange and provide counterfeit bank guarantees. The agency stated that their actions caused significant financial losses to the Solar Energy Corporation of India Ltd. (SECI).

“The investigation has revealed that Dutta played an active role in arranging and facilitating fake bank guarantees along with other accused persons,” the ED said in an official statement.

The case involves a bank guarantee worth Rs68.2 crore, allegedly submitted to SECI on behalf of Reliance NU BESS Ltd., a subsidiary of Reliance Power (formerly Maharashtra Energy Generation Ltd.). The guarantee, purportedly issued by FirstRand Bank, Manila, was later found to be fraudulent, as the bank does not operate any branch in the Philippines.

Investigators estimate that SECI incurred losses exceeding Rs100 crore as a result of the forged guarantee.

Fake Domain and Wider Forgery Network

The ED further alleged that Biswal Tradelink Pvt. Ltd. was engaged in a wider racket, issuing fake bank guarantees to various corporate clients in exchange for a commission of around 8 percent. The money laundering case stems from an FIR filed by the Delhi Police’s Economic Offences Wing (EOW) in November 2024, accusing the company of large-scale forgery and cheating.

In addition, the Bhubaneswar-based firm reportedly used a deceptive email domain—similar to that of a major public sector bank—to send forged correspondence to SECI. “The accused used the fake domain ‘sbi.co.in’ to mislead recipients and authenticate fraudulent documents,” the ED’s statement said.

Reliance Group Response

Responding to the allegations, Reliance Power maintained that it is a “victim of fraud, forgery, and cheating conspiracy.” The company said it had filed a criminal complaint with the Delhi Police’s EOW in October 2024 and had duly disclosed the matter to the stock exchanges on November 7, 2024.

A Reliance Group spokesperson reiterated that Anil Ambani has not served on the board of Reliance Power for over three and a half years and is “not concerned with the matter in any manner.”

The ED’s investigation into the alleged financial fraud and money laundering continues.