The Enforcement Directorate has registered a money laundering case against media entrepreneur Subhash Chandra over an alleged loan fraud that caused a ₹1,322 crore loss to Life Insurance Corporation Housing Finance Limited, officials said on Monday.
The case has been filed under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act after the agency took cognisance of a First Information Report registered by the Central Bureau of Investigation. The CBI case followed a complaint by LICHFL, which alleged that Chandra used inflated net-worth certificates to secure the approval and disbursal of two loans totalling ₹980 crore.
According to the complaint cited in the FIR, one ₹500 crore facility was extended to Vasant Sagar Properties Private Limited, with Pan India Infra Projects Private Limited as co-borrower. The facility was sanctioned for takeover, top-up and business expansion and was secured by a continuing guarantee executed by Chandra on March 28, 2018.
The second facility, worth ₹480 crore, was extended to Digital Subscriber Management and Consultancy Services Private Limited, with Spirit Infra Power and Multi Ventures Private Limited as co-borrower. The loan was sanctioned as a rental-discounting facility under a rental-securitisation scheme and was also backed by a continuing guarantee executed by Chandra, the FIR alleged.
LICHFL alleged that a net-worth certificate issued by DJM and Co on March 28, 2018, placed Chandra’s net worth at around ₹59,000 crore. A second certificate issued by chartered accountants MPJ and Co on July 6, 2018, put his net worth at ₹40,562 crore and was used in connection with the digital facility, according to the complaint.
Both loans subsequently went into default, the lender said. During insolvency proceedings under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016, Chandra denied having the net worth stated in the certificates submitted to LICHFL. The FIR said he valued his net worth at ₹31.79 crore in 2024 and at no more than ₹40,000 crore in 2017-18.
The CBI complaint alleges that Chandra acted in collusion with the borrower companies and their officers and directors, and that funds advanced by LICHFL were subsequently misappropriated. It further accuses him of creating false documents showing an inflated net worth to induce the lender to deploy funds.
LICHFL was among the lenders that approached the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal against a recent National Company Law Tribunal repayment plan. Under that plan, creditors would recover about ₹6.5 crore from Chandra’s personal estate against claims of approximately ₹22,006 crore.
Zee Entertainment Enterprises said the ED case concerns Chandra in his personal capacity and promoter entities, and has no bearing on Zee or its operations. The company’s spokesperson said the matters “have no bearing on ‘Z’ or its operations in any manner.” The ED’s proceedings will now examine the alleged laundering of proceeds connected to the loans and the transactions involving the borrower entities.
