The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has filed a supplementary prosecution complaint in the ongoing investigation related to alleged fake bank guarantees submitted by Anil Ambani–led Reliance Power Limited, through its subsidiary Reliance NU BESS Limited, to the Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI) to secure a large-scale energy storage tender.
According to officials, the complaint names several individuals, including Biswal Tradelink Pvt. Ltd. Managing Director Partha Sarathi Biswal, Biothane Chemicals’ Amar Nath Dutta, Reliance NU BESS’ Ravinder Pal Singh Chadha, Rosa Power Supply Company’s Manoj Bhaiyasaheb Pongde, former Reliance Power CFO Ashok Kumar Pal, and Punit Narendra Garg.
Origin of the Case
The money laundering probe traces back to an FIR lodged by the Delhi Police Economic Offences Wing (EOW) in November 2024. SECI had alleged that Reliance NU BESS submitted forged bank guarantees as part of its bid for a tender involving the development of a 1000 MW / 2000 MWh standalone Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) under tariff-based competitive bidding.
Additionally, Reliance NU BESS had also filed an FIR against Biswal Tradelink Pvt. Ltd. and its director Biswal, citing irregularities in the bank guarantee procurement process.
ED’s Allegations
Under the tender requirements, bidders were mandated to deposit a bank guarantee valued at ₹68.2 crore. If issued by a foreign bank, the guarantee had to be formally endorsed by its Indian branch or by the State Bank of India (SBI).
ED claims that Reliance Power, “with prior knowledge and dishonest intention,” engaged Biswal Tradelink to procure a fabricated guarantee purportedly issued by FirstRand Bank, Manila—an entity and branch that do not exist—and another said to be from ACE Investment Bank, Malaysia.
Investigators further assert that the endorsement on these guarantees was fraudulently executed using forged SBI letters and an email domain designed to mimic the official SBI address. The domain s-bi.co.in was used in place of SBI’s legitimate sbi.co.in.
Alleged Financial Trail
ED maintains that Reliance Power diverted ₹6.33 crore from its subsidiary Rosa Power Supply Company to Biswal Tradelink under falsified transport-related contracts to finance the arrangement. A series of fabricated invoices and work orders were allegedly generated to “regularise” the flow of funds. Of this, ₹5.40 crore was allegedly transferred to Biswal Tradelink after securing the bogus guarantee.
Detection of the Fraud
The agency alleges that Reliance officials were fully aware of the counterfeit nature of the guarantees and their endorsements. Once SECI noticed discrepancies and flagged the issue, Reliance reportedly attempted to replace the documents with a legitimate guarantee issued by IDBI Bank. However, SECI declined to accept the substitute guarantee.
Investigators also claim that the company subsequently attempted to secure a fresh endorsement of the foreign guarantee from an SBI branch in Kolkata, despite awareness of the purported forgery.
Current Status
The supplementary complaint adds to the prosecution case pending before the designated court. With multiple arrests already made in connection with the matter, the latest filings strengthen ED’s stance that the submission of forged financial instruments was an intentional act aimed at securing a high-value renewable energy tender.
Further proceedings are expected to determine criminal liability for the alleged conspiracy, forgery, and laundering of funds routed through shell entities.
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