The Enforcement Directorate (ED) secured custodial remand of Vinesh Kumar Chandel in a money laundering case after presenting detailed arguments before the court highlighting his alleged central role in handling proceeds of crime.
Vinesh Chandel, Director of Indian PAC Consulting Pvt. Ltd., who was arrested late Monday night by the Enforcement Directorate (ED), in Rs 50 Crore Money Laundering Case has been sent to 10 days of custodial remand by the federal anti-money laundering agency.
Chandel is the founder, director, and a 33 per cent shareholder of the company.
Meanwhile, the ED on Tuesday issued summons to wife of Pratik Jain of I-PAC director, Barbie Jain, and brother, Pulkit Jain, for Interrogation under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act 2002 at its Delhi headquarters on Wednesday.
As per court records, the ED argued that Chandel was actively involved in the generation, concealment, and layering of illicit funds through structured financial transactions linked to Indian PAC Consulting Pvt. Ltd. The agency told the court that a portion of funds was routed through formal banking channels, while a significant amount was allegedly diverted via cash and hawala routes, indicating a deliberate attempt to hide the true origin of money.
The ED further submitted that funds were introduced into company accounts in the guise of unsecured loans without any legitimate business purpose, and bogus invoices were used to give an appearance of genuine consultancy services. Investigators claimed that these methods were used to project tainted money as legitimate income.
Seeking custody, the ED stressed that custodial interrogation was necessary to trace the full money trail, identify other beneficiaries, and confront the accused with documentary and digital evidence. It also argued that there was a risk of the accused influencing witnesses and evading investigation.
Trinamul Congress national general secretary Abhishek Banerjee reacting to the arrest of Chandel wrote in X: “The arrest of Vinesh Chandel, co-founder of I-PAC, barely 10 days before the Bengal elections, is not just alarming ~ It shakes the very idea of a level playing field. At a time when WB should be moving toward free and fair elections, this kind of action sends a chilling message: If you work with the opposition, you could be next. That’s not democracy- that’s intimidation!”