In major relief to NCP leader Praful Patel as the Appellate Tribunal for Safema, which deals in Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) cases, quashed the attachment of multiple flats owned by him on the 12th to 15th floors of Ceejay House in Worli, Mumbai, worth over Rs 180 crore.
Enforcement Directorate (ED) had attached at least seven flats in Ceejay House owned by Patel, his wife Varsha and their company Millennium Developers in 2022, which was later confirmed by the PMLA’s adjudicating authority. The probe agency had alleged that the properties were acquired from the widow of late drug lord Iqbal Mirchi through illegal transactions.
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Quashing this attachment order on Monday, the appellate tribunal said ED’s actions against the Patels were illegal since these properties were not involved in money laundering, or linked to Iqbal Mirchi. The tribunal further said that properties spanning 14,000 squre feet belonging to Hazra Memon and her two sons in Ceejay House were attached separately and a double attachment of another 14,000 sq feet belonging to the Patels was not required as it was not part of the proceeds of crime.