ED questions Cong leader Ahmed Patel in Sterling Biotech case

The officials further said that a  three-member team reached at Mr Patel’s official accommodation  at 23, Mother Teresa Crescent in the central Delhi around 1130 hrs.

The Congress leader’s statement was recorded under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), as his alleged links with the Sandesara brothers, the main accused in the Sterling-Biotech case, are under the scanner.

Earlier on two occasions the agency had summoned the 70-year-old Congress Rajya Sabha member from Gujarat, but he cited COVID-19 guidelines advising senior citizens to stay indoors to avoid appearing before ED as a few Covid positive cases were reported in the probe agency's office.

Following this, the ED told him that its official would visit his home in order to take the investigation forward. Subsequently, the time for home visit was fixed and the agency informed Patel that they would send the investigating officer for questioning.

This PMLA case pertains to the alleged bank loan fraud of worth Rs 14,500 and is said to have been perpetrated by the Vadodara-based pharmaceutical company Sterling Biotech and its main promoters - Nitin Sandesara, Chetan Sandesara and Deepti Sandesara - who all are absconding and are stated to be living in Nigeria, from where India is trying to extradite them.

The agency has said that this is a bigger bank scam in volume than the PNB fraud involving Nirav Modi and Mehul Choksi, who allegedly defrauded the bank to the tune of about Rs 13,400 crore.

The Sandesaras have also been facing separate probes by the CBI and the Income Tax Department for their alleged nexus with some high-profile politicians and charges of corruption and tax evasion, respectively. The ED registered a criminal case on the basis of an FIR and a charge sheet filed by the CBI.

The  financial probe agency had already questioned  Mr Patel’s son Faisal and son-in-law Irfan Siddiqui in this case and recorded their statements too.