Surat: The Surat branch of the Directorate of Enforcement (ED) recently conducted searches in 4 cities in Gujarat and Maharashtra in a Rs. 2800 crore money laundering case involving the city-based firm Paplaj Foreign Trade LLP.

“Directorate of Enforcement (ED), Surat conducted search operations under the provisions of Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA), 1999 at the premises of M/s Paplaj Foreign Trade LLP, its partners Somabhai Sunderbhai Meena & Ojaskumar Mohanlal Naik and its associates at various locations in Surat, Vadodara, Mumbai and Pune. During the search operations, various incriminating documents and electronic devices were recovered and seized,” the probe agency said on Monday.

ED was acting on the tip-off that Paplaj Foreign Trade LLP has made large-scale suspicious outward remittances on account of the overvaluation of the import and export of diamonds.

The investigation revealed that the firm had done an overvaluation of the import of diamonds and has remitted an amount of Rs. 2800 Crore (approx.) between July 2023 and March 2024.

The probe further revealed that the firm had received amounts of Rs. 2800 Crore (approx.) from various non–existent entities based in Surat, Delhi, Mumbai, Pune, etc., and remitted the same to eight entities based in Hong Kong. During the search, it was been revealed that the entities which transferred amounts of Rs. 2800 Crore approximately to Paplaj Foreign Trade LLP were shell entities and had provided accommodation entries through a web of complex transactions in the garb of sale–purchase of diamonds.

Further investigation is under progress. DeshGujarat