Image Credits - PharmaAdda
Image Credits - India Today
Enforcement Directorate officials have carried out search operations at multiple premises linked to Parabolic Drugs, a pharmaceutical company situated in Chandigarh, as well as its promoters. These activities are part of an ongoing investigation into money laundering linked to a suspected bank loan fraud case, as reported by official sources.
The searches, carried out by the central agency, encompassed a total of 17 locations in Delhi, Mumbai, Chandigarh, Panchkula, and Ambala (Haryana). This enforcement operation is being carried out in accordance with the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) and stems from a 2021 CBI FIR targeting the company and its promoters, notably Vineet Gupta and Pranav Gupta.
According to sources, the agency is examining certain documents from Ashoka University in Sonepat because Vineet Gupta and Pranav Gupta have had previous associations with the educational institution. The university has made it clear that the ED has asked for information regarding the ongoing investigations involving Parabolic Drugs, in which Vineet Gupta and Pranav Gupta, the founders of Ashoka University, hold director positions.
In December 2021, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) filed a case against the senior executives of Parabolic Drugs for purportedly defrauding a consortium led by the Central Bank of India, amounting to Rs 1626.74 crore. The CBI subsequently conducted raids at their premises. Among those named in the CBI case were the Managing Director of the company, Pranav Gupta, along with company directors Vineet Gupta, Deepali Gupta, Rama Gupta, Jagjit Singh Chahal, Sanjeev Kumar, Vandana Singla, Ishrat Gill, and guarantors TN Goyal and Nirmal Bansal, as well as an individual named J D Gupta.
At that time, the university firmly stated that it had no connection with the CBI investigation involving Parabolic Drugs Limited and its directors. Any attempt to establish a connection was dismissed as being “frivolous and misleading.”