In an unusual late-night development, a Delhi judge held a court hearing at 3am at her own residence to decide the custody of a builder accused in a Rs 222 crore money laundering case linked to the PM Awas Yojana (PMAY) affordable housing scheme. The hearing took place because the Enforcement Directorate (ED) arrested the accused shortly before midnight and needed to produce him within 24 hours, as required by law, according to a report in The Times of India.

The hearing was led by Additional Sessions Judge Shefali Barnala Tandon of the Patiala House Courts.

Who was arrested

The man arrested is Swaraj Singh Yadav, promoter of Ocean Seven Buildtech Pvt Ltd (OSBPL). ED alleges that he illegally sold PMAY flats in Gurugram at much higher prices after cancelling the allotments of genuine homebuyers. These buyers were mostly people eligible for affordable housing.

ED officers searched for him from 6.55am on Thursday, and he was finally taken into custody late in the night.

What the ED says about the scam

According to the ED, the original PMAY flats cost Rs 26.5 lakh each. But the accused allegedly cancelled these allotments on the false excuse of "non-payment" and later re-sold the same flats for Rs 40-50 lakh, mostly in all-cash deals. The original allottees did not get their money back.

The agency claims the builder and related companies have been running a nationwide money-laundering scam since 2006, cheating homebuyers in Mumbai, Jaipur, Kotputli and Gurugram.

ED said that the total amount of money diverted is around Rs 222 crore.

Money moved abroad and properties bought

ED told the court that this money was 'layered' through connected companies and used for buying large personal assets. These include:

• 500 acres in Ware village, Maharashtra
• 100 acres on the Pune-Alibag Road
• Sai Rupa Resorts in Tirthan Valley, Himachal Pradesh
• Land in Boston, USA
• Financial assets in the UK

The agency also said that during searches, it recovered ₹86 lakh from the home of Yadav's brother-in-law. The relative told ED that the cash belonged to Yadav and was kept there for safety.

ED claims he was preparing to escape

The ED told the judge that Yadav had recently sold several of his personal and company properties at a fast pace, including:

• A flat in Jalvayu Vihar, Gurugram
• 40 acres of land in Borgaon, Maharashtra
• 15 acres of land in Jaipur

The agency said this showed he was trying to 'dispose of the proceeds of crime' and may try to flee.

ED also pointed out that his wife, Sunita Swaraj, moved to the United States in August 2025 and now stays at Harvard University in Boston, Massachusetts. His children study at Trinity College in Hartford, Connecticut. ED argued that this increases the flight risk because he has family and funds abroad.

Court begins the hearing at 3.05am

The accused's lawyer was still on the way when the hearing began at 3.05am, but the court continued. Both sides argued their case until 6.30am.

ED's Special Public Prosecutor Simon Benjamin sought 14 days' custody, saying they needed time to question Yadav and compare his statements with other evidence.

Yadav's lawyer argued that most of the cases mentioned by ED were already settled, and only one FIR was pending in court.

Judge orders 14 days' ED custody

Judge Tandon said the grounds of arrest showed a 'grave apprehension' that Yadav might try to escape. She noted the foreign residence of his family members and the reported diversion of funds abroad.

The judge therefore sent him to 14 days of ED custody, until 28 November, and instructed that he must be brought to court at 2pm on that day.

PMAY Gurugram project still incomplete

ED said OSBPL launched its PMAY project in Gurugram in December 2016, collected Rs 217 crore from over 1,000 homebuyers, but failed to complete the project.

The case has raised serious questions about how funds meant for poor and middle-class homebuyers were allegedly misused. The ED says the scam spread across multiple states and ran for nearly two decades. The court will next review the case when Yadav is produced again on 28 November.

(With ANI inputs)

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