ED attaches properties worth ₹10,021.46 crore in PACL case

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has provisionally attached 247 immovable properties worth ₹10,021.46 crore in connection with a ₹48,000-crore financial fraud case against PACL Limited and related entities, said the agency on Wednesday (February 18, 2026).

“This is probably the biggest attachment ever,” said an agency official. The properties are located in Punjab’s SAS Nagar, Rupnagar, Zirakpur and Mohali. The total attachment in the case so far now stands at about ₹17,610 crore, including two immovable assets worth ₹462 crore in Australia attached in 2018.

The agency has taken action under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), based on a First Information Report (FIR) registered by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on February 19, 2014, following a direction of the Supreme Court. The CBI has filed a chargesheet and a supplementary chargesheet against 33 accused, including individuals and companies.

As alleged, they operated an illegal collective investment scheme and collected funds from lakhs of investors across India under the pretext of sale and development of agricultural land.

“Investors were induced to invest under Cash Down Payment and Instalment Payment Plans, and were made to sign misleading documents such as agreements, powers of attorney and other instruments. In most cases, land was never delivered, and about ₹48,000 crore remains unpaid to investors. The scheme involved use of multiple front entities and reverse sale transactions to conceal the fraud and generate wrongful gains,” the agency said.

After registration of the FIR, the Supreme Court had on February 2, 2016, directed the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) to constitute a committee under the chairmanship of former Chief Justice of India, Justice R. M. Lodha, to dispose of the land purchased by PACL and to distribute the sale proceeds to the investors.

However, further investigation revealed continued alleged illegal dissipation of PACL assets, leading to registration of three additional FIRs by the Punjab Vigilance Bureau, Jawahar Circle police station (Jaipur), and Attibele police station (Bengaluru) for illegal sale, encroachment, and misuse of land acquired using investor funds.

In 2016, the ED initiated probe into the money-laundering charge and filed a prosecution complaint in 2018, followed by three supplementary complaints in 2022, 2025 and earlier this year, against various accused persons and entities. The special court concerned has taken cognisance of them.