Anand Jain a prominent businessman considered a close aide of Mukesh Ambani and referred by many as the “third son” of Reliance Industries founder Dhirubhai Ambani is facing allegations of financial fraud worth Rs 2400 crore and is being investigated by a Special Investigation Team (SIT) following directions issued by the Bombay High Court to the CBI in January this year. Who is Anand Jain? A well-known name in the business world Anand Jain heads Jai Corp Limited as its Chairman and was once ranked 11th on the Forbes list of 40 richest Indians. Anands son Harsh Jain is the co-founder and CEO of fantasy sports platform Dream 11. According to Forbes Mukesh Ambani and Anand Jain had planned to develop several special economic zones (SEZs) as well as a port but faced setbacks in land acquisition. Jain is a major name in the real estate business having investments in 33 projects in 14 cities across India. Anand Jain and Mukesh Ambani share a close friendship since the school days at Mumbais Hill Grange High School. Over time Jain also became close to Dhirubhai Ambani and was considered a close confidante of the Reliance founder till the latters demise. For this reason Anand Jain is referred to by many insiders as Dhirubhai Ambanis third son. Anand Jain career and rise of Reliance Industries Anand Jain began his journey in the business world almost simultaneously with his childhood friend Mukesh Ambani and first came to limelight during the mid-1980s when he played a key role in dismantling a bear cartel led by former Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) kingpin Manu Manek. Over the years Anand Jain would slowly become a central figure in the management of Reliances day-to-day operations especially in Mukesh Ambanis pet telecom project Reliance Infocomm which later became Reliance Jio Infocomm Limited (RJIL) and is currently the largest telecom provider in India. Jain also closely managed Reliances real estate ventures due to his expertise in the sector. Never took a salary at Ambanis Reliance Despite being closely associated with the Reliance Group for over 25 years in various roles Anand Jain has reportedly never taken a salary his close friendship Mukesh Ambani and his respect for late Dhirubhai Ambani apparently being the only reasons for his association with the Fortune 500 conglomerate. According to details Anand Jain joined the Reliance Group leaving his own business in Delhi in 1981 when Mukesh Ambani returned from Stanford University. Since then Jain has remained closely associated with Reliance and currently serves as a senior executive in charge of a team working on the first greenfield SEZ in Mumbai. Jain whose net worth is pegged at around $525 million according to Forbes has previously served as as vice-chairman of Reliance Capital and was also on the board of Indian Petro Chemicals Ltd. Apart from his role in Reliance Anand Jain is also the chairman of the venture capital firm Urban Infrastructure Venture Capital Limited which finances young entrepreneurs and businesses. What are the allegations against Anand Jain? According to the complaints filed against Anand Jain the businessman and his company Jai Corp are accused of defrauding investors misappropriation of public funds for personal gain round-tripping of funds through shell companies based in tax havens aka money laundering and creation of dubious and fictitious invoices The allegations are serious offenses of financial fraud and money laundering under the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA). Meanwhile based on the directive issued by the Bombay High Court the CBI has registered an FIR against Anand Jain and his company in which the veteran businessman has been accused of committing fraud to the tune of Rs 2434 crore. The central agencys investigation in the case also involves Urban Infrastructure Venture Capital and Urban Infrastructure Trustees Ltd two firms floated by sister companies of Jai Corp and their associated partners.