The Directorate of Enforcement (ED), Gurugram Zonal Office, announced on Wednesday that it has arrested Raman Puri, Varun Puri, and Vikram Puri – the promoters and former directors of M/s Universal Buildwell Pvt Ltd – under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act in connection with a case involving alleged real estate fraud.
The individuals arrested, who were taken into custody on Tuesday night, had been evading law enforcement for over seven years and had been declared proclaimed offenders by multiple courts in related matters. Their apprehension was carried out by the Delhi Police. On Wednesday, the special PMLA court in Gurugram ordered the trio to be remanded into ED custody until July 29.
The ED commenced its investigation into the case following the registration of more than 30 FIRs under various sections of the IPC across the Delhi NCR against M/s Universal Buildwell Pvt Ltd, Raman Puri, Vikram Puri, and Varun Puri for their failure to complete real estate projects in a timely manner and for defrauding homebuyers and investors of their hard-earned money.
The company underwent the Corporate Insolvency Resolution Process (CIRP), which led to the acceptance of a resolution plan for homebuyers and other financial contributors, with the NCLT (National Company Law Tribunal) ordering the delivery of certain assets to the homebuyers, who were recognized as financial creditors, while the remaining assets were to be liquidated. Most homebuyers had invested in the project prior to 2010. The case originates from the fraudulent mobilization of funds from homebuyers and investors by the accused through Universal Buildwell Pvt Ltd, based on deceptive assurances of project completion by 2010 and promises of guaranteed returns on commercial projects.
The arrested individuals are also charged with defrauding various financial institutions through acts of forgery and fraud. They allegedly transferred certain assets at minimal rates, oversold existing inventory, and executed forged agreements for their personal gain.
In this regard, information obtained from the resolution professional indicated that the company, via its alleged promoters, amassed over Rs 1,000 crore over a span of 12 years across eight distinct projects in Gurugram and Faridabad, specifically Universal Trade Tower, Universal Greens, Universal Business Park, Aura, Universal Square, Market Square, The Pavilion, and Universal Prime.
It is claimed that they utilized only a portion of the funds for development purposes and misappropriated the remaining funds to purchase land and other assets for their personal benefit through criminal misappropriation, fraud, forgery, and cheating.
