PACL Scam: Delhi HC Orders ED Not To Arrest Promoter Bhangoo’s Daughter Barinder Kaur till 29th April

Bar and Bench 23 April 2025

Economy & Nation

The Delhi High Court on Tuesday ordered the Enforcement Directorate (ED) not to arrest Barinder Kaur in the money laundering case related to the alleged Rs48,000 crore PACL Scam.

Justice Girish Kathpalia said no coercive steps should be taken against Kaur till the Court hears the matter on April 29.

Kaur was ordered by the High Court to appear before the ED on April 25.

“However, at request of learned Panel Counsel for DoE [ED], it is made clear that the interim protection granted above is solely in order to ensure effective hearing to both sides and this protection has not been granted on merits,” the Court said.

Kaur is the daughter of Nirmal Singh Bhangoo, founder of Pearl Agrotech Corporation Limited (PACL), who allegedly duped over five crore people of Rs48,000 crores.

Bhangoo promised investors high returns for their investment by purchasing land for agricultural and commercial purposes. His company claimed that the land will be sold at a significant profit. The company operated as a pyramid scheme and encouraged everyone to recruit two others.

He passed away last year.

In March this year, the Delhi zonal office of the ED conducted search operations at three premises in Gurgaon under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002. The premises searched on 23 March 2025 belonged to Barinder Kaur, daughter of PACL founder late Mr Bhangoo and her associate Manoj Kumar. Manoj Kumar is identified as a close associate of Ms Kaur and her husband Harsatinder Pal Singh.

During the operations, officials seized significant evidence, including digital records and property documents linked to PACL and its affiliates. ED has stated that further investigations into the scam are ongoing.

The investigation stems from a first information report (FIR) registered by the banking and securities fraud cell (BSFC) of central bureau of investigation (CBI) under Sections 120-B (criminal conspiracy) and 420 (cheating) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), 1860, against PACL India Ltd, PGF Ltd, and key accused, including Nirmal Singh Bhangoo. The companies and individuals involved are alleged to have operated fraudulent investment schemes, deceiving thousands of investors.

As part of the probe, Harsatinder Pal Singh, the son-in-law of the late Mr Bhangoo, was arrested on 21 March 2025 and has been remanded to ED custody by a special court.

The PACL fraud case is considered one of India’s largest financial scams, with lakhs of investors allegedly defrauded through deceitful investment schemes.

In February 2019, a committee headed by retired justice (retd) RM Lodha, which is supervising the Supreme Court (SC)-ordered process of selling PACL's assets initiated the process of refunds in phases for investors who had invested in PACL. PACL (or Pearls) is one of the largest Ponzi schemes in India which had been allowed to run for decades, amassing over Rs60,000 crore. The committee asked PACL investors to submit online applications for refunds.

Courtesy: Bar & Bench

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