Image used for representational purposes only. Photo: X/@dir_ed
The Enforcement Directorate has provisionally attached 37 immovable properties worth about ₹1,986.48 crore in connection with a case alleging misappropriation of over ₹48,000 crore by PACL Limited and others.
They are located in Punjab’s Ludhiana and Jaipur in Rajasthan, said the agency on Monday (January 26, 2026). The total value of attachment in the case so far stands at about ₹7,589 crore, including the properties located abroad.
The ED probe is based on a First Information Report registered by the Central Bureau of Investigation on February 19, 2014.
According to the agency, the accused entities and individuals operated an illegal collective investment scheme, fraudulently mobilising more than ₹60,000 crore from lakhs of investors across India under the guise of the sale and development of agricultural land.
“Investors were induced to invest through Cash Down Payment and Instalment Payment Plans and were made to sign misleading documents, including agreements, powers of attorney, and other instruments. In the majority of cases, no land was ever delivered, and about ₹48,000 crore remains unpaid to investors. The scheme involved the use of multiple front entities and reverse sale transactions to conceal the fraud and generate unlawful gains,” it said.
As alleged, the misappropriated funds were routed through various related and unrelated entities and were ultimately credited to the bank accounts of the then group chief, late Nirmal Singh Bhangoo, his family members, and associates, and related entities of PACL. They were subsequently used for the acquisition of immovable properties in their names.
During the investigation, open-ended non-bailable warrants have been issued against Bhangoo’s wife, Prem Kaur, their daughters, Barinder Kaur and Sukhwinder Kaur, son-in-law Gurpratap Singh,close associate Prateek Kumar, the agency said.
The ED registered the case under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act in 2016 and filed a prosecution complaint in 2018, followed by two supplementary prosecution complaints in 2022 and 2025, against the accused persons and entities. The special court has taken cognisance of all the complaints.
Published – January 26, 2026 03:06 pm IST
