Punjab’s Power and Industries Minister Sanjeev Arora’s firm, M/s Hampton Sky Realty Limited (HSRL), paid Rs 27.73 crore in remittances to a firm registered in the name of a daily-wage labourer, ED had alleged during a remand hearing before the special court under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), Gurugram.M/s HSRL has shown mobile phones’ sales valued at approximately Rs 157.12 crore from May 12, 2023, to October 27, 2023, to several local and overseas entities. Out of this, ED told the court that exports worth about Rs 102.50 crore were made to two UAE-based entities — M/s Fortbel Telecom FZCO and M/s Dragon Global FZCO.Web of firmsAccording to ED, Rahul Aggrawal is the beneficial owner of two foreign entities, M/s Fortbel Telecom FZCO and M/s Dragon Global FZCO, to which mobile phones were purportedly exported. He was an employee with Findoc Group (another major shareholder of Hampton Sky Realty Limited) and had drawn a salary from M/s Findoc Sons, added ED.It has further been alleged that M/s Fortbel Telecom FZCO is a related entity of M/s Fortbell Gadget Pvt Ltd, which is owned by Ludhiana-based businessman Hemant Sood and also Chander Sekhar who are associated with M/s HSRL through M/s Findoc Finvest Pvt Ltd.ED disclosed that “during the course of the search operation, a detailed investigation of the supply chain of the purchase parties indicated that many of the supplier entities are non-existent, shell/dummy firms, or entities with no financial capacity, which have issued bogus invoices without the actual supply of goods”. It added that several such entities are either non-filers of Income Tax Returns, reporting negligible income and or have been deregistered/suspended under GST shortly after a brief period of operation.”ED told the court that the residential premises of Kavya Arora, son of Sanjeev Arora, were searched on April 17, 2026, under FEMA, and his statement was recorded. Kavya is currently the MD of M/s HSRL. According to Kavya Arora, M/s HSRL started exporting mobile phones from 2022 onwards to the Middle East countries while also engaging in the real estate business.The mobile phones were purchased locally in India, said ED.Kavya stated that his father, Sanjeev Arora (erstwhile CMD of M/s HSRL), used to look after the export business of mobile phones, which was discontinued in 2024 as it was not profitable, claimed ED. He named CFO Deepak Sharma, who was assisting his father in the export business.According to ED, Deepak Sharma, revealed that iPhones were purchased from the local market. He said that export-related work for iPhones to Dubai and the UAE was handled at the Ghitorni Office of M/s HSRL.Following the search under FEMA, an FIR was registered against Sanjeev Arora and his son, Kavya; Hemant Sood; Chander Sekhar; M/s Hampton Sky Realty Limited; and M/s Findoc Finvest Pvt Ltd for cheating, forgery, criminal breach of trust, disappearance of evidence, and criminal conspiracy at the Udyog Vihar police station, Gurugram, on April 18, 2026.Supplies of mobile phonesED further told the court that M/s HSRL “has purportedly procured mobile phones from various domestic entities” and “multiple supplier entities are interconnected through common mobile numbers, email IDs, and other identifiers, indicating that these entities are controlled by a single group of persons for the purpose of generating accommodation entries and fake invoices.” It added that “certain entities in the chain do not have any genuine upstream suppliers, clearly establishing that the invoices raised by them were fictitious in nature.”One of the mobile numbers belonged to Karik Verma, who was also covered in the FEMA search and seizure operation conducted by the ED on April 17, 2026.“The investigation revealed that the number has been misused by certain individuals for generating fake invoices. Kartik Verma has also made a complaint with Haryana Police, stating therein that he has been receiving SMS from the GST Department regarding notices issued on certain firms which have been registered with GST by linking with his mobile number XXXXXXX961,” said ED.ED’s ECIR was registered on May 5, 2026.Proprietor of a supplier firm is a daily-wage earnerM/s SK Enterprises, a proprietorship concern of Kamal Ahmad, has its office in North Gonda, Delhi. The GST registration of the entity was suspended on May 14, 2024.During the period from August 5, 2023, to January 27, 2024, a total of 41 RTGS remittances worth Rs 27.73 crore were made from the ICICI account of M/s HSRL to M/s SK Enterprises, routed through its three different bank accounts, said ED.Ahmed, in his statement to ED, said that he is a daily-wage labourer with limited education and had no knowledge or control over the affairs of M/s SK Enterprises, though the firm was registered in his name. He stated that the firm’s business operations, GST registration, banking activities, and financial transactions of the firm were managed by Azhar Haider.He received around Rs 1.5-2 lacs in cash and/or in Paytm from Azhar. He revealed to ED that no genuine business activities were carried out by M/s SK Enterprises and that the firm was used by Azhar to provide accommodation entries and circulate funds in lieu of commission.He stated that Haider also carried out cash trading of mobile phones.According to ED, Azhar Haider, a proprietor of M/s Global Traders based in Daryaganj, Delhi, revealed that he provided accommodation entries to anyone who approached him on a commission basis. He categorically denied supplying any goods or services to M/s HSRL and M/s SK Enterprises against the payment received by him in his personal account as well as in the account of M/s Global Traders.The ED told the court that he also stated that he used to receive a 1.5-2 per cent commission on the total transaction value.M/s Global Traders had received Rs 2.55 crore from M/s HSRL in 12 RTGS remittances from July 22, 2023, to September 26, 2023, against the purchase of mobile phones. Additionally, Rs 50 lakh more was paid to Azhar. M/s Global Traders had received Rs 83 lakh from SK Enterprises as well, according to ED.The funds in the M/s HSRL account were sourced from the M/s Fortbel Telecom FZCO, along with GST refunds and promoter-group funding.The GST registration of M/S Global Traders was cancelled suo motu for the firm not being functional at its principal place of business.ED told the court that Sanjeev Arora, being the then Chairman and Managing Director of M/s Hampton Sky Realty Limited, in connivance with others, generated proceeds of crime worth Rs 102.5 crore by way of purported export and bogus purchases by way of forging documents and receiving GST refunds on exports made.Arora was arrested on May 9 at 4 pm and produced before the court of District and Sessions Judge Narender Sura, who is a special judge under the PMLA, at 11.20 pm.ED told the court that his custodial interrogation was required to ascertain the true and real source of the foreign inward remittance and to identify the other beneficiaries. It said it wanted to ascertain the final usage of funds remitted.Counsel of Sanjeev Arora argued that ED’s case is based on GST remittance against the exports of mobile phones, but the Investigating Officer has not collected any material from Department of Customs, etc., to verify whether mobile phones were actually exported or not. He added that, except for the statements of Ahmad and Haider, there is nothing on record and in their statements, they had not even named Sanjeev Arora.While allowing a seven-day remand, Judge Narender Sura said that “allegations against the accused are very serious”, and that ED is seeking to “decode the money trail, role of the accused, viz-a-viz his persons/aids”, and that a valid ground exists for custodial interrogation.