The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) announced on Friday that it had opened an investigation into a Kolkata-based private company and others, including its promoters or directors, unknown public servants, and others, in connection with a Rs 4,000 crore bank fraud.
The agency said searches were carried out in 16 cities, including Nagpur, Mumbai, Ranchi, Kolkata, Durgapur, Ghaziabad, and Vishakhapatnam. According to the investigation agency, the case was filed in response to a complaint from the Union Bank of India alleging a bank fraud totaling Rs 4,037.87 crore to a consortium of 20 banks.
According to the CBI statement, the Union Bank of India, the consortium’s lead lender, declared the account as non-performing assets (NPA) on September 30, 2013, and the other member consortium banks followed suit. On October 25, 2019, the borrower company’s accounts were declared fraudulent.
Between 2009 and 2013, the borrower allegedly submitted manipulated project cost statements and diverted bank funds. The probe agency also claimed that trade receivables, primarily transactions to related parties and funds, were diverted to a web of various companies that were dummy accounts, allowing the borrower to syphon off the funds.
