Team Goemkarponn
PANAJI: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has provisionally attached assets worth ₹1,023.85 crore in connection with its investigation into alleged illegal iron ore mining and money laundering activities involving companies associated with the Salgaocar Group.
The action, taken by the ED’s Panaji Zonal Office under the Prevention of Money-Laundering Act (PMLA), covers a total of 130 assets located in India and Singapore.
According to the agency, the attached assets include 99 immovable properties in India valued at ₹459.10 crore, 31 overseas properties in Singapore estimated at ₹471.32 crore and equity investments in Indian firms worth ₹93.42 crore.
The properties and investments are reportedly linked to the Estate of late Anil Vassudeva Salgaocar and several corporate entities connected to the group, including companies engaged in mining, trading, infrastructure and port operations.
The ED’s investigation originates from a criminal case registered by the Goa Crime Branch, which alleged offences under various laws, including provisions related to corruption, mining regulations and criminal misconduct.
Officials stated that the probe examined mining activities undertaken in Goa after November 2007, a period that was subsequently scrutinised by the Supreme Court in landmark judgments concerning the state’s mining sector.
The agency alleges that multiple mining leases operated by the group generated substantial revenues through extraction and export of iron ore during the period under investigation. It further claims that export transactions were routed through overseas entities, enabling profits to be accumulated outside India before being channelled through foreign corporate structures.
Investigators believe that a significant portion of these funds was later invested in assets abroad, while some of the money allegedly returned to India through investment routes presented as legitimate capital inflows.
The ED has estimated the alleged proceeds generated through the mining and export activities at several thousand crore rupees and stated that financial transactions connected to the case are still being examined.
The attachment of assets represents a major step in the ongoing investigation and is subject to adjudication under provisions of the PMLA. Further proceedings in the matter are expected as the agency continues its probe into the alleged financial irregularities linked to Goa’s mining sector.
