The Supreme Court on Friday issued fresh notices to industrialist Anil Ambani and his conglomerate, the Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group (ADAG), in a public interest litigation (PIL) seeking a court-monitored investigation into alleged large-scale banking and corporate fraud involving the group and its associate entities.
A bench led by Chief Justice Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi directed the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and the Enforcement Directorate (ED) to file sealed status reports within ten days on the progress of their respective probes into the alleged fraud.
The court also instructed the Registrar General of the Bombay High Court to ensure proper service of notice on Ambani and ADAG and to file a compliance report. The matter will be taken up after ten days.
The PIL has been filed by former Union Power Secretary E A S Sarma, who has alleged that ADAG entities were involved in fraudulent diversion of public funds, fabrication of financial statements, and systemic collusion with institutional actors.
On November 18, 2025, the apex court had earlier issued notices to the Centre, CBI, ED, Anil Ambani, and ADAG on the same plea. Noting that Ambani and the group had not responded yet, the court said this would be their final opportunity to file a response.
Advocate Prashant Bhushan, appearing for the petitioner, submitted that the alleged fraud was “probably the largest corporate fraud in India’s history” and claimed that it had been underway since 2007-08, though an FIR by the CBI was registered only in 2025.
Bhushan strongly criticised the investigation agencies for failing to probe the alleged involvement of bank officials, asserting, “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 urged the court to direct both agencies to file detailed reports on their investigation into the roles of banks and their officials in facilitating the alleged financial misconduct.
Taking note of Bhushan’s submissions, the bench directed Solicitor General Tushar Mehta—appearing for the CBI and ED—to ensure submission of status reports in a sealed cover within ten days. The bench also fixed the next hearing for the matter after that period.
The petitioner’s plea highlights alleged financial irregularities across multiple ADAG entities, accusing them of large-scale diversion of public funds with regulatory failure. According to the petition, the scope of the CBI’s FIR and the ED’s ongoing proceedings cover only a fraction of the overall fraud.
The petitioner contends that without judicial oversight, the investigation risks being incomplete or compromised, especially given the alleged institutional complicity.
The PIL remains pending for further hearing, with the court reiterating its concern over the seriousness of the allegations and the need for effective judicial scrutiny of the ongoing investigation.
