sp-leader-vinay-tiwari-held-in-750-cr-bank-fraud-by-ed

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Monday arrested Samajwadi Party (SP) leader Vinay Shankar Tiwari in connection with an alleged ₹750-crore bank fraud involving Gangotri Enterprises Ltd, a company promoted by him.

 

The arrest took place in Lucknow after the financial crimes agency conducted extensive searches across multiple cities earlier in the day.

 

Tiwari, the son of late strongman and former Uttar Pradesh minister Hari Shankar Tiwari, was taken into custody under provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), following his non-compliance with multiple summons issued by the agency.

 

ED officials said raids were carried out at 10 locations linked to Gangotri Enterprises across Lucknow, Noida, Gorakhpur, Delhi and Mumbai.

 

The agency alleges that the company took loans from a consortium of banks but defaulted on repayments and misused funds.

 

“Gangotri Enterprises Ltd had secured credit facilities worth ₹1,129.44 crore. Of this, approximately ₹750 crore remains unpaid. The funds were allegedly siphoned off and diverted in violation of banking norms,” an ED official said on condition of anonymity.

 

The probe is centred on charges of financial irregularities, fund diversion, and non-repayment of loans. According to the ED, the primary promoters of the company include Vinay Shankar Tiwari, Rita Tiwari, and Ajeet Pandey.

 

The agency stated that the actions of the promoters led to a wrongful loss of over ₹750 crore to the lending banks.

 

The financial watchdog initiated searches early Monday morning with over a dozen teams fanning out simultaneously across the identified locations. Sources indicated that the raids were prompted by Tiwari’s failure to respond to earlier ED notices.

 

Vinay Shankar Tiwari, once a Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) MLA, had contested and won the Chillupar Assembly seat in Gorakhpur, previously held by his father. He later joined the Samajwadi Party and contested the 2022 Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections but lost.

 

While Tiwari has yet to release an official statement, the Samajwadi Party has not commented on the arrest.

 

The investigation is ongoing, and further action may follow, depending on the financial records and digital evidence seized during the raids.