Chanda Kochhar
ICICI bank loan fraud case: Chanda Kochhar, her husband and Venugopal Dhoot sent to judicial custody till Jan 10
Mumbai/IBNS: A special CBI court in Mumbai sent former ICICI Bank MD and CEO Chanda Kochhar, her husband Deepak Kochhar, and Videocon's Venugopal Dhoot to judicial custody till January 10 in a loan fraud case.
The case relates to alleged cheating and irregularities in loans sanctioned by the ICICI Bank to companies in the Videocon Group.
The Central probe agency arrested Kochhars on Friday, December 23, while Dhoot was arrested on the following Monday.
On Thursday, CBI, did not seek further custody, and all three accused were sent to judicial custody till January 10, India Today reported.
Chanda Kochhar, 59, had quit as CEO and managing director of ICICI Bank in October 2018 over allegations that she favoured Videocon Group, a consumer electronics and oil and gas exploration company.
The CBI alleged that she violated the bank's code of conduct and internal policies.
She has been accused of criminal conspiracy and cheating by the probe agency for alleged irregularities in a loan of Rs. 3,250 crores in 2012 to the Videocon Group, which became a non-performing asset for the ICICI Bank.
The loan was granted in violation of the Banking Regulation Act, RBI guidelines, and credit policy of the bank, CBI has alleged.
A whistleblower alleged that Kochhar's husband Deepak Kochhar and her family members benefited from the dealings.
Last year, the ED had filed a criminal case under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) against Chanda Kochhar, her husband and Venugopal Dhoot of Videocon Group to investigate alleged irregularities and corrupt practices in sanctioning Rs 1,875 crore in loans by ICICI Bank.
The probe agency had also attached assets worth Rs 78 crore in connection with a money laundering case.
As per reports, since Chanda Kochhar and Deepak Kochhar were not cooperating with the agency, therefore he was placed under arrest.
Reports said Dhoot had provided Rs 64 crore to a firm called NuPower Renewables Pvt Ltd that he had set up with Deepak and two relatives six months after the Videocon group got Rs 3,250 crore as a loan from ICICI Bank in 2012. Rs 2,810 crore of the loan remains unpaid.
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