NEW DELHI, Aug 7: Registering one of its biggest bank fraud cases, the CBI has booked Kanpur-based Shri Lakshmi Cotsyn and its chairman-cum-managing director Mata Prasad Agarwal and others for allegedly causing a loss of over Rs 6,833 crore to a consortium of 10 banks led by Central Bank of India, officials said on Saturday.
Following the registration of case, which is the biggest bank fraud of the year probed by the CBI in terms of amount involved, the Central Bureau of Investigation carried out searches at nine locations in Noida, Roorkee, Kanpur and Fatehpur, the officials said.
Besides Agarwal, the CBI also named joint managing director and guarantor Pawan Kumar Agarwal, director and guarantor Sharda Agarwal, and deputy managing director Devesh Narain Gupta, as accused in the FIR registered on the complaint of Central Bank of India, they said.
The bank in its complaint, now part of the FIR, alleged, “The said accused persons/entities have fraudulently and dishonestly, intentionally cheated the complainant bank to cause wrongful losses to it.”
“In pursuance to criminal conspiracy the accused persons/entities along with unknown persons/entities have diverted funds thus committing act of embezzlement of public money,” the bank alleged.
The accused misrepresented facts on the basis of false and fictitious documents and have committed the act of forgery, they said.
The company which is engaged textiles business had availed loan facilities from a consortium of 23-member banks led by the Central Bank of India. In the instant case, 10 banks led by the Central Bank of India have approached the CBI based on which the agency has registered a case.
“The Central Bureau of Investigation has registered a case on a complaint from Central Bank of India on behalf of 10 consortium member banks against a private company and others including its directors, unknown public servants and unknown others for causing an alleged loss of Rs.6833.82 crore (approximately) to the lender banks,” CBI spokesperson RC Joshi said.
He said the company allegedly reported inflated inventory records, its auction process was not fairly organised and voluminous sale transactions were carried out with undisclosed related parties.
“The funds were allegedly siphoned/ diverted by the company and this amounts to fraudulent removal or concealment of property etc, to prevent distribution among creditors. The credit facilities granted to the accused was classified as fraud on July 20, 2020 by Central Bank of India.
The agency had last year booked Hyderabad-based Transstroy (India) Ltd in alleged bank fraud case worth over Rs 7,926 crore.
Some of the other big cases under probe the agency include Rs 9,000 crore bank fraud case against Vijay Mallya and Kingfisher, Rs 6,344 crore against Gitanjali Gems and Mehul Choksi, Rs 6,498 crore against Nirav Modi, Rs 5,383 crore against Sterling Biotech among others. (PTI)
Follow our WhatsApp channel