New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Friday issued fresh notices to industrialist Anil Ambani and the Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group (ADAG) in connection with a public interest litigation (PIL) seeking a court-monitored investigation into alleged large-scale banking and corporate fraud involving the group and its companies.
The PIL alleges systematic diversion of public funds, fabrication of financial statements, and institutional complicity across multiple entities of the Anil Ambani-led Reliance ADAG. It further claims that the FIR registered by the CBI on August 21, 2025, along with the connected ED proceedings, addresses only a limited portion of the alleged fraud.
A bench comprising Chief Justice Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi directed the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and the Enforcement Directorate (ED), represented by Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, to submit sealed status reports within 10 days detailing the progress of their ongoing probes.
The bench noted that Anil Ambani and ADAG had already been served notices in the PIL filed by former Union secretary EAS Sarma. The court, however, granted them a final opportunity to appear and file their responses in the matter.
The judges also instructed the Registrar General of the Bombay High Court to ensure proper service of notices on Anil Ambani and ADAG and to file a compliance report. The PIL has been listed for hearing after 10 days.
The court had issued notices on November 18 last year to the Centre, the CBI, the ED, Anil Ambani and ADAG after hearing submissions by senior advocate Prashant Bhushan, who appeared for the petitioner. At that stage, the bench had sought responses from all parties within three weeks.
During the hearing, Bhushan alleged that investigative agencies were failing to probe the alleged collusion of banks and their officials in what he described as "probably the largest corporate fraud in India's history." He sought directions to the CBI and ED to file detailed status reports specifically addressing investigations into the role of banks and their officials.
According to Bhushan, the alleged fraud dates back to 2007-08, although the FIR was registered only in 2025. "We want a status report from the ED and the CBI on what they are investigating. Clearly, they are not probing the collusion by the banks," he told the court.
In December, the CBI had also registered a criminal case against Ambani's son Jai Anmol Anil Ambani and his firm Reliance Home Finance Ltd (RHF) in a ₹228-crore bank fraud case following a Union Bank of India complaint alleging fund diversion and breach of trust.