Bonafide Rights Petition — PMLA / SARFAESI / IBC / PBPT Act — for NRIs

NRI specifics

Bonafide-purchaser / bonafide-owner petitions for NRIs caught in PMLA/SARFAESI/IBC/PBPT proceedings — establishing that the property was acquired through documented FEMA-compliant inward remittance and is outside the proceeds-of-crime net.

All consideration flows are routed through your NRO/NRE account where applicable. Repatriation of any net proceeds is handled under the USD 1 million per financial year limit, with Form 15CA / 15CB and Section 195 TDS clearance coordinated with your CA.

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What This Service Is

Under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), the Enforcement Directorate (ED) — an Indian government agency that fights economic crime — can temporarily seize your real estate if they suspect it came from illegal activities, known as "proceeds of crime." This seizure is called a provisional attachment by Section 5 of the PMLA, the law that allows this action. If your property is attached under PMLA, or under the Benami Transactions (Prohibition) Act (PBPT Act) — a law preventing property ownership under a false name — or under the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC) — the law governing criminal legal procedures — you need to prove you bought it legally with money from "untainted" sources. This often means showing documents from many decades ago. These cases are extremely serious in property law. Even the lawyer's fees can be frozen if the ED believes they are part of the illegal money.

What the Service Entails

Defending against a PMLA attachment is the most challenging and detail-oriented work in property law. We start by quickly reviewing the attachment order — the official document seizing your property — and the "predicate offense" — the original crime that led to the money laundering suspicion. This helps us understand the specific legal reason the ED or other authority used. Then, we meticulously trace every rupee from your declared and taxed income through the banking system to the property purchase. This forensic fund-tracing creates a complete "Money Trail" document. This document is crucial for any successful defense. Our team has backgrounds in both finance (MBA from ISB) and law, so we handle this analysis ourselves. We don't rely on accountants who might not understand the legal requirements. Based on the Money Trail, we prepare your Petition — a formal written request to the court. This includes explaining why you are a bona fide purchaser — an innocent buyer who bought the property in good faith without knowing about any illegal ties — detailing the chronology of your funds, and pointing out specific weaknesses in the attachment order. We review the first draft of the petition to ensure it's consistent. After discussing possible counter-arguments from the ED and preparing you for the Adjudicating Authority — the legal body that decides PMLA cases — we provide the final, ready-to-file petition with all necessary supporting documents.

Our Specialized Inputs

Our team's unique combination of finance (MBA from ISB) and law skills allows us to perform the in-depth fund-tracing that is essential for a strong PMLA defense. We track every rupee from your declared income through the banking system to your property purchase. Many lawyers cannot do this analysis and rely on accountants who often don't understand the specific legal standards needed. We do both in-house. We also have detailed knowledge of how the ED creates its provisional attachment orders. This means we know exactly where to find and challenge the procedural weaknesses in their orders.