The Emaar Township scam case — a sensational chapter in Hyderabad’s real estate history — has taken an unexpected turn. A key update has emerged regarding the attachment orders issued by the Enforcement Directorate on villa plots belonging to Tollywood star Ram Charan Tej, well-known former cricketer V. Chamundeswaranath, and several others. On August 6, the PMLA Appellate Tribunal in New Delhi delivered a significant ruling, granting a clean chit to those who had purchased plots by paying crores of rupees, nearly 95 percent of which was paid through cheques and bank transactions. So what exactly is the Emaar scam? Who are the key masterminds behind the financial irregularities amounting to over ₹167 crore? And what does the future hold for the crores-worth Gachibowli plots purchased by Ram Charan and Chamundeswaranath? Let’s find out in this story.
To understand the roots of this case, we need to look back at developments between 2002 and 2008. During the undivided Andhra Pradesh era, under the leadership of Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy, roughly 535 acres of government land in Hyderabad’s Gachibowli and Manikonda areas were allotted for a project.
The plan was to build an international-standard integrated township — comprising villas, apartments, a golf course, and commercial complexes. For this purpose, the state-owned Andhra Pradesh Industrial Infrastructure Corporation (APIIC) and the Dubai-based international firm Emaar Properties came together to form a joint-venture Special Purpose Vehicle called Emaar Hills Township Private Limited (EHTPL).
Under the terms of this joint venture, Emaar was allotted a 74 percent equity share, while APIIC, the government entity, received a 26 percent equity share in exchange for the land. In other words, 26 percent of every profit and revenue generated by the project was meant to flow to the state governments — Telangana and Andhra Pradesh — through APIIC.
The agreement appeared sound on paper — but that is where the real story begins.
To boost its own profits and undercut APIIC’s rightful 26 percent share, the Emaar Group allegedly orchestrated a large-scale conspiracy. To this end, Emaar Hills brought in another developer, Emaar MGF Land Limited (EMGF), into the picture.
Initially, an agreement was drawn up allocating 75 percent of the revenue to Emaar MGF and 25 percent to Emaar Hills. Subsequently, however, secret supplementary agreements were signed that slashed APIIC’s revenue share from 26 percent to a mere 5 percent. As a result, hundreds of crores of rupees in revenue rightfully owed to APIIC were drastically reduced. According to documents, villa plots were shown on paper as being sold for as little as ₹5,000 per square yard, while the actual market rate for the project ranged from ₹20,000 to ₹45,000 per square yard. Buyers were officially charged only ₹5,000 through cheque payments, while the remaining amount — ranging from ₹20,000 to ₹45,000 per square yard — was allegedly collected in cash. Through an agent called Stylish Homes, individuals including Tummala Rangarao, Koneru Rajendra Prasad, Koneru Madhu, and N. Sunil Reddy allegedly collected over ₹102.87 crore in black money in cash, diverting the funds without recording them in official accounts. The CBI registered an FIR in this matter in 2011. During the investigation, both the CBI and the ED concluded that Emaar’s promoters had illegally amassed funds amounting to ₹167.29 crore.
The CBI’s allegation is that the Emaar company siphoned off hundreds of crores of rupees by deceiving the government. But what happened to the VIPs and prominent individuals who had come forward to purchase plots in this villa project? Among them were actor Ram Charan, Chamundeswaranath, K. Lalitha, and Bijay Kumar Mandhani. They had booked plots worth crores of rupees at Boulder Hills in Gachibowli and paid 95 percent of the amount. However, in 2012, the ED stepped in and, treating these plots as assets linked to illegally acquired funds, placed them under attachment. So what happened to the money the buyers had paid? Were they defrauded? Or did the Emaar company deliberately hand over their plots to the ED? Let’s examine this now.
Among the 14 plots attached by the ED, four key plots came up before the current Appellate Tribunal.
1. V. Chamundeswaranath:
Plot Number: B-44 (1,458 square yards)
Value as assessed by the ED as of 2014: ₹3.64 crore
He entered into an MOU as early as 2005 and paid ₹69,25,500 (approximately 95 percent) through cheques.
He had agreed to pay the remaining 5 percent — ₹3 lakh — at the time of registration.
2. K. Ram Charan Tej:
Plot Number: B-30 (1,545 square yards)
Value as assessed by the ED: ₹3.86 crore
Ram Charan paid ₹73,38,750 through IDBI Bank in 2009.
He also legally paid an additional ₹3,40,827 via cheque toward brokerage/commission. In total, 95 percent of the plot’s value was paid through banking channels.
3. K. Lalitha:
Plot Number: A-11 (1,192 square yards)
Value as assessed by the ED: ₹2.98 crore
In 2008, she paid ₹56,62,000 (95 percent) through a demand draft.
4. Bijay Kumar Mandhani:
Plot Number: B-46 (1,486 square yards)
Value as assessed by the ED: ₹3.71 crore
Records show he too paid ₹70,58,500 as per the agreement.
All four buyers paid 95 percent of their respective plot values in “white money” — legitimate funds paid via cheques and demand drafts, clearly declared in their Income Tax Returns.
It is here that a major fraud perpetrated by the Emaar company came to light. After buyers paid 95 percent of the amount, they were required to pay the remaining 5 percent and complete registration. However, once APIIC’s allegations exposed Emaar’s irregularities, the Andhra Pradesh government issued a Government Order in October 2010 completely banning the registration of plots in the Emaar project. As a result, buyers were unable to get their plots registered.
As soon as the CBI and ED began their investigation into the matter, Emaar company officials allegedly created falsely dated cancellation letters within their internal systems — effectively lying to ED officials by claiming that “these plots were cancelled by the buyers themselves and remain unsold.”
In reality, however, the buyers never received any such cancellation notices, and Emaar never returned the 95 percent of the money they had paid. Believing Emaar’s false claims, the ED treated these plots as “unsold assets” and issued a provisional attachment order in 2012. The investigation was later expanded with additional details, leading to a second provisional attachment order in 2014. By this point, the value of plots belonging to buyers like Ram Charan Tej and Chamundeswaranath had risen to over ₹3 crore each.
Challenging the ED’s attachment of their plots, Ram Charan, Chamundeswaranath, Lalitha, and Mandhani approached the PMLA Appellate Tribunal. Their lawyers presented strong arguments before the tribunal, stating that their clients had legally paid 95 percent of the amount to the company via cheques after seeing newspaper advertisements and hoardings, and had no connection whatsoever to the crime or to the diversion of funds committed by Emaar. They argued that every rupee the buyers paid constituted legitimate income, and that the plots were not purchased using illegally acquired funds.
They contended that their clients were victims of the scam perpetrated by the Emaar company. They further argued that Emaar possessed thousands of acres of land in and around Delhi, and that it was entirely unjust for the ED to attach the plots of innocent victims who had purchased them legally, while leaving the assets of the actual accused untouched.
After hearing all these arguments, Special PMLA Appellate Tribunal single-bench judge Rajesh Malhotra delivered a significant ruling on August 6. The tribunal’s order laid out several key findings. It directed that buyers must prove before the PMLA court that they had paid 95 percent of the amount through cheques or demand drafts. However, it declined to immediately release the properties attached by the ED. It indicated that the ED may conduct a fresh inquiry into whether or not the buyers qualify as victims. It directed that if the buyers are found to be victims, the ED must promptly verify these details, submit a report to the PMLA court, and release the plots from attachment.
The tribunal further stated that if the ED fails to act within the stipulated time, Ram Charan and the other buyers may directly approach the Special PMLA Court. It clarified that if the buyers are found to have no connection to the scam, they would be permitted to deposit the remaining 5 percent balance and complete registration of the plots in their names. In effect, the August 6 ruling has brought a measure of relief to Ram Charan, Chamundeswaranath, and the other buyers.
Now, if the ED submits a report to the court clearing the buyers of any wrongdoing, or if the buyers succeed in proving they have no connection to the scam, these crores-worth Gachibowli villa plots will be cleared entirely. In effect, this amounts to something close to a clean chit for those who purchased the plots legally.
Overall, with the tribunal’s ruling on August 6, the long-running saga of the Emaar villa plot attachments — which has been playing out since 2012 — appears to be moving toward a clear resolution.
This case stands as a significant illustration for the real estate sector — both of how carefully legal aspects must be examined before purchasing a project, no matter how big the builder, and of how the law can ultimately protect those who make their purchases honestly, with fully accounted money.