The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has arrested Ashok Pal, the Chief Financial Officer (CFO) of Reliance Power, in a money laundering investigation. The case centers on an alleged fake bank guarantee worth over ₹68 crore that was submitted to the Solar Energy Corporation of India Limited (SECI).
Pal was taken into custody on Friday night, October 10, 2025, under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA). A special court has since granted the ED two days’ custody of Pal, who will be produced again on Monday, October 13, 2025.
Key Allegations and Details
| Aspect | Detail |
| Arrested Official | Ashok Pal, CFO and Executive Director of Reliance Power. |
| PMLA Case Core | A fake bank guarantee of ₹68.2 crore submitted to SECI for a Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) tender. |
| Company Involved | The guarantee was submitted by Reliance NU BESS Limited, a Reliance Power subsidiary. |
| Method of Fraud | The bogus guarantee was falsely issued in the name of FirstRand Bank, Manila, Philippines, a location where the bank has no operational branch. |
| Alleged Racket | The guarantee was allegedly arranged through Odisha-based Biswal Tradelink, a “paper entity” whose Managing Director, Partha Sarathi Biswal, is already in judicial custody. |
| Spoofed Domains | The racket used lookalike email domains, such as s-bi.co.in instead of sbi.co.in, to impersonate major banks like the State Bank of India (SBI) and send forged communication to SECI. |
| Fund Diversion | The ED alleges Pal used his position to play a “crucial role” in diverting company funds by approving payments and facilitating paperwork for fake transport invoices via platforms like Telegram and WhatsApp, bypassing the official company workflow. |
Corporate Response
The Reliance Group maintains that Reliance Power has been a victim of fraud, forgery, and cheating conspiracy in this matter.
- The company made disclosures regarding the issue to the stock exchange in November 2024.
- The group spokesperson noted that they had lodged a criminal complaint against the third party (Biswal Tradelink) with the Delhi Police’s Economic Offences Wing (EOW) in October 2024.
This case is part of a broader investigation by the ED into the financial dealings of the Anil Ambani Group.
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