(Reuters) -Reliance Communications is facing a probe from India’s Serious Fraud Investigation Office, it said on Thursday, in a move that will pile more pressure on the insolvent company, which is already under the scrutiny of the country’s financial crime-fighting agency.
The company said an SFIO-appointed inspector had asked it and its unit, Reliance Communications Infrastructure, to provide “certain information” for the time period between fiscal year 2009 and 2024, without disclosing further details.
Reliance Communications added that it would extend full cooperation to the authorities.
The separate Enforcement Directorate’s probe relates to cases involving Reliance Communications and its affiliates over the alleged diversion of about 136 billion rupees and loans of more than $569 million taken by the group from YES Bank between 2017 and 2019.
Reliance Communications was part of the Anil Ambani-owned Reliance Group until 2019, when it was admitted into insolvency. The troubled conglomerate is owned by the younger brother of billionaire Mukesh Ambani.
The ED has been investigating the Anil Ambani group for alleged divergence of bank loans, and said on Thursday it had so far cumulatively frozen assets worth 89.97 billion rupees ($1.01 billion).
A spokesperson for the Reliance Group said that Reliance Communications has been undergoing insolvency proceedings over the last six years and the ED’s orders have no material impact on the operations and future prospects of Reliance Infrastructure and Reliance Power.
($1 = 88.6640 Indian rupees)
(Reporting by Hritam Mukherjee in Bengaluru; Editing by Anil D’Silva)
