Reliance Group Chairman Anil Ambani on Monday refused to appear before the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in a Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA) case for the second time.
The businessman reiterated his willingness to depose via "virtual appearance/recorded video," a statement he had made when skipping the first summons on November 14.
The ED rejected Ambani's offer and issued a fresh summons for Monday. It remains unclear whether a third summons will be issued.
Proceedings under FEMA are civil in nature, unlike criminal investigations under the anti-money laundering law.
A spokesperson for the 66-year-old businessman said, "Mr Anil D. Ambani has offered to make himself available for the recording of his statement, at any date and time suitable to ED, via virtual appearance/recorded video."
Sources said the agency had asked Ambani to appear in person on Friday to record his statement under FEMA.
The investigation concerns the Jaipur-Reengus highway project.
In an earlier statement, the ED said that after recently attaching assets worth Rs 7,500 crore belonging to Ambani and his companies under anti-money laundering law, a search against Reliance Infrastructure Ltd. revealed that Rs 40 crore was allegedly "siphoned" from the highway project.
"Funds moved through Surat-based shell companies to Dubai. The trail has unearthed a wider international hawala network exceeding Rs 600 crore," the agency said.
The ED has recorded statements from various individuals, including alleged hawala dealers, before summoning Ambani, according to sources. Hawala refers to the illegal movement of funds, often in cash.
"The matter (FEMA case) is 15 years old, dates to 2010. It concerns issues associated with a road contractor," Ambani’s spokesperson said.
In 2010, Reliance Infrastructure Ltd. awarded an EPC (engineering, procurement, and construction) contract to build the JR Toll Road (Jaipur-Reengus highway), the statement added.
"This was a purely domestic contract with no foreign exchange component involved whatsoever. The JR Toll Road has been fully completed and, from 2021 onwards, has been with the National Highways Authority of India," the statement said.
Ambani is not a member of the board of Reliance Infrastructure. "He served the company for about 15 years, from April 2007 to March 2022, only as a non-executive director, and was never involved in day-to-day management of the company," the spokesperson said.
The businessman has previously been questioned by the ED in a money laundering case linked to an alleged Rs 17,000-crore bank fraud involving his group companies.