New Delhi: Rajesh Exports, now in the news after the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) issued an interim order on June 3 alleging the company had misrepresented roughly Rs 15.15 lakh crore in revenue over five years, had been a beneficiary under the Union government’s Rs 18,100-crore Production Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme for Advanced Chemistry Cell (ACC) battery storage.As The Wire reported, promoter Rajesh Mehta has already been barred from buying, selling or trading in securities of the company until the matter is resolved.Rajesh Exports has reported vast revenues for years, making it one of India’s largest companies by turnover. However, when investigated, the regulators could not find the records to back those numbers. Sebi’s interim order, issued by Kamlesh Chandra Varshney, found that up to 99% of Rajesh Exports’ consolidated revenues were attributed to overseas subsidiaries, particularly Switzerland-based Valcambi SA, a globally recognised Swiss precious metal refiner. The firm disclosed suspiciously low standalone revenues in its audited financial statements. Despite Rajesh Exports repeatedly telling investigators that Valcambi was the principal operating entity within the group, its revenues at the subsidiary level ran to only a few Rs 100 crores annually, telling a vastly different story. The regulator described the scale of the alleged inflation as “egregious and unheard of.”The Ministry of Heavy Industries (MHI), which administers the battery storage programme, is currently examining the Sebi order. A government official, speaking to the Economic Times, said, “There is a strong view that the company should be removed as a beneficiary,” adding that a final call will be taken after the detailed examination is concluded. Furthermore, the Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA) is coordinating with Sebi over the issue and may order a probe to ascertain potential corporate governance lapses, reported ET. The MCA may even ask the concerned Registrar of Companies to inspect the company.Troubles within the PLI scheme predate the Sebi order. Rajesh Exports, which was selected as one of the beneficiaries under the ACC PLI scheme in March 2021, had faced persistent delays in execution, to the point that it was penalised last year for missing timelines, as per a Mint report.The report noted that by December 2025, the company had invested only Rs 262 crore in the battery business against a mandate to build 5GWh of capacity. This figure looks especially scant when compared to Ola Electric’s disclosures indicating that the first phase of 1.4 GWh alone requires nearly Rs 1,200 crore. According to ET, the MHI probe found that the company had merely erected a boundary wall and a shed at the site of its proposed battery manufacturing unit. Additionally, the government official said that although the company bid under the PLI scheme as Rajesh Exports, its arm ACC Energy Storage had been the one executing it.The company is yet to receive any subsidy under the scheme.The order also flagged “fund diversion, non-transparent related-party arrangements and disclosure deficiencies involving two entities – Elest Private Limited and ACC Energy Storage Pvt. Ltd. – connected to its lithium-ion cell business,” noted Mint. The order further alleged that Rajesh Exports recorded over Rs 11,000 crore in transactions with Affluence Shares and Stocks Pvt. Ltd., a company that denied any such dealings. Corporate funds were also reportedly routed through Mehta’s personal bank accounts, with the company admitting that certain transfers were made “without revealing the bank account from which the funds had come,” as reported by Deepal Trivedi. The matter is set to be referred to the National Financial Reporting Authority over concerns about statutory audit oversight.Also read: SEBI Says Gujarati Businessman Hid Rs 15 Lakh Crore From Gatekeepers and Regulators in IndiaMehta claimed that the company is yet to receive any communication from either ministry regarding the case. He told ET that the Sebi interim order has only made observations. “I don’t think an interim order or plain observations should warrant any questions by the MCA,” he said. With regard to the PLI scheme speculations Mehta said, “There has been no adverse communication from the ministry to us regarding the battery PLI scheme. In any case this matter has nothing to do with the scheme and is totally separate.” “We are progressing well under the PLI scheme and will deliver as required,” he added.