https://www.cnbctv18.com/business/mumbai-court-clears-dhfl-now-piramal-finance-in-rs-5050-crore-money-laundering-case-ws-l-19843351.htm

A Special Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) Court in Mumbai discharged Dewan Housing Finance Corporation Limited (DHFL), now known as Piramal Finance Limited, in a ₹5,050 crore money laundering case linked to Yes Bank.

DHFL was represented by the dispute practice team at Trilegal, led by partners Ashwyn Misra and Chitra Rentala, and included senior associate Parikshith Kezhkekara and associate Priyanka Vishnoi.

The court, in its order passed on February 2, 2026, granted the company statutory immunity under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC). The court applied the clean slate principle after DHFL was acquired by the Piramal Group through the Corporate Insolvency Resolution Process (CIRP).

The court said the new management should be allowed to “make a clean break with the past and start on a clean slate.”

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) had alleged that DHFL worked with Rana Kapoor, former MD and CEO of Yes Bank, in a criminal conspiracy involving proceeds of crime worth ₹5,050 crore. Of this, ₹4,450 crore was alleged to have flowed to DHFL.

Reserve Bank of India (RBI), after DHFL defaulted on payments, initiated insolvency proceedings against the company in November 2019. The Piramal Group’s resolution plan was approved by the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT), Mumbai, in June 2021, resulting in a complete change in management.

DHFL was rebranded as Piramal Capital and Housing Finance Limited in September 2021 and is now Piramal Finance Limited. The Supreme Court of India upheld the NCLT’s approval of the resolution plan in April 2025.

The new management applied for discharge under Section 32A of the IBC. The court said the two conditions for immunity were met — approval of a resolution plan and a change in control to parties not linked to the former promoters.

The court said Section 32A, introduced in 2020, is a “later enactment” and overrides provisions of the Prevention of Money-Laundering Act. It also referred to a November 15, 2021, order by the Bombay High Court that discharged DHFL in a related case investigated by the Central Bureau of Investigation on similar grounds.

The court order clarified that the immunity does not apply to individuals and stated, “The erstwhile officers/directors of the corporate debtor... shall continue to be prosecuted and punished for such an offence committed by the corporate debtor”.