MUMBAI: Enforcement Directorate has filed a chargesheet in a money laundering case related to a cartel involved in the sale of fake artworks. Naming art gallery owner Rajesh Rajpal and lawyer Vishwang Desai, ED has alleged that Rajpal received proceeds of crime worth Rs 15.7 crore generated through the sale of fake paintings, whereas Desai acted as the sole intermediary, curating art options, negotiating terms and vouching for authenticity of the works before prospective buyers.The cartel allegedly traded in counterfeit works claiming they were by the likes of M F Husain, F N Souza and other prominent artists.The chargesheet also names Abhishek Jain, Manish Sakariya and Rare Art Gallery Pvt Ltd, saying Jain and Sakariya assisted in layering the proceeds of crime.According to the chargesheet, the accused had prepared forged certificates of authenticity and provenance of paintings, including an unsigned certificate pertaining to a painting allegedly by F N Souza, and duped a businessman buyer, who is the complainant in the case.ED’s money laundering case is based on a cheating case registered at Tardeo police station in 2024.Earlier, the police had filed a closure report in the case, terming the dispute as being of ‘civil nature’ since the accused had returned Rs 2.2 crore to the complainant from the total money he received. However, the magistrate’s court rejected the report and ordered police further investigation against Rajpal and Desai. ED claimed that by creating and circulating fabricated documents, Desai enabled Rajpal to misrepresent forged artworks as genuine, thereby inducing the complainant to part with Rs 15.7 crore through banking channels. Subsequently, some of this amount was withdrawn, with no clarity on its recipient or use.ED asserted that Desai’s role extended beyond generating the proceeds of crime to projecting them as untainted property in Rajpal’s hands. Although ED was unable to find a money trail directly linking it to Desai, it maintained that his active connivance and deliberate assistance allowed Rajpal to integrate and layer the illicit funds into the financial system under the guise of genuine art sales.
