Hours after Punjab minister Sanjeev Arora’s arrest, Hampton Sky Realty denies ED allegations

Chandigarh: Hours after Punjab minister Sanjeev Arora was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED), Hampton Sky Realty Ltd issued a statement denying allegations of "round-tripping" and "bogus exports" levelled by the agency in the case linked to the minister, who earlier served as a director of the company.The company said it entered the mobile phone export business in May 2023 under the Centre's "Make in India" and Production-Linked Incentive (PLI) initiatives. It claimed to have exported 44,471 branded mobile phones and accessories, mainly Apple iPhones and Samsung devices, to the United Arab Emirates.Hampton Sky Realty asserted that all exports underwent independent verification, including Customs examination at ACC New Delhi and IMEI scanning through the ICEGATE system.Rejecting allegations of round-tripping, the company said there was "no economic basis" for such claims as "nothing has been retained offshore" and no funds were retained by the company or its associates abroad.On alleged GST input tax credit irregularities, the company claimed it was itself a "victim of supplier-side fraud". It said it had lodged an FIR in May 2025 against certain suppliers and maintained that the disputed transactions formed only a small percentage of its overall procurement.The company further stated that the corresponding GST amount had already been deposited, resulting in "no loss to the govt exchequer".It also claimed the "genuineness" of exports had been established after 16,391 IMEIs were cross-verified by Apple Inc and Samsung Electronics using global activation databases, confirming the handsets were activated outside India after export.The company said it was fully cooperating with authorities and expressed confidence that "truth will prevail".MSID:: 130980343 413 |