Canara Bank loan fraud: CBI books businessman once close to CM Mamata Banerjee

Mangalore Today News Network

Kolkata, Feb 28, 2018 : The CBI has booked Kolkata-based computer company RP Infosystems Ltd and its directors for allegedly defrauding Canara Bank of over Rs 500 crore in loans on the basis of forged stocks and debtors’ statements and wilfully defaulting on the loan amount by diverting the same.

 

One of the company directors, Shibaji Panja, booked by the CBI in the case is known to be close to West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and has been arrested earlier by Delhi Police and booked by CBI in connection with defrauding banks.

In February 2015, Panja had been dramatically arrested while returning from Dhaka with Mamata Banerjee. West Bengal police had detained him on the basis of a lookout circular issued by Economic Offences Wing of Delhi police. Panja had accompanied Banerjee as a non-official delegate to Bangladesh on a three-day visit.

Banerjee had at that time distanced herself from Panja.

Panja has earlier been appointed to several high-powered West Bengal committees related to film and culture and has been an official advisor for industrial promotion. Panja was one of the founders of the RP Group, a set of businesses that once marketed computers under the brand “Chirag”. He is also into film production.

The CBI in June 2015 booked Panja and RP Infosystems along with other directors for allegedly pulling off a loan fraud to the tune of Rs 180 crore on IDBI bank.

In the present case, CBI has booked Panja along with Kaustuv Ray and Vinay Bafna (both directors in the company) and Vice President (Finance) Debnath Pal, apart from unknown officials of Canara Bank.

Kaustuv Ray and Vinay Bafna had been booked by CBI earlier as well in 2015, along with Panja.

According to the complaint filed by Canara Bank with the CBI, RP Infosystems cheated a consortium of 10 banks led by Canara Bank of Rs 515.15 crore. The bank has alleged that the company availed of funds on the basis of false and fabricated stock/receivable/debtors’ statements, forged drawing power letter etc.

It has alleged that “letters of credit (LCs) opened by different member banks of the consortium on the applications of M/S RP Infosystems Ltd started devolving from 2012 onwards due to non-maintenance of funds. The said borrower company dishonestly and fraudulently did not route the sale proceeds through the loan account and siphoned off the entire amount.”

The bank has alleged that the company also inflated its receivables. It said that some of the purported debtors such as Gail India Ltd, Vincent Electronics (Rourkela) and CEAT Ltd had informed the State Bank of India, one of the consortium banks, that they had no dealings with the company.

The consortium also includes Punjab National Bank (PNB) which is at the centre of a Rs 12,636 crore loan fraud pulled off by diamantaires Nirav Modi and Mehul Choksi.

Other members of the consortium include State Bank of Bikaner and Jaipur, Union Bank of India, Allahabad Bank, Oriental Bank of Commerce, Central Bank of India, State Bank of Patiala and Federal Bank.

I 2015, when CBI booked Panja and RP Infosystems for Rs 180.44 crore loan fraud against IDBI Bank, it said in a statement, “It was alleged that the accused persons had availed credit facilities from IDBI Bank, Kolkata by furnishing false stock/debtors statement and cheated IDBI Bank. An alleged loss of Rs.180.44 crores (approx) was caused to IDBI Bank.”

This is the same modus operandi as mentioned in the current FIR against the company.

In the 2015 FIR, CBI had said that the loans were taken in 2012-13 and turned into NPA.

The Delhi police case, meanwhile, was registered in July, 2014 and dealt with a loan fraud of Rs 18 crore. According to Delhi police, Panja had approached IFCI Factors in November, 2012 for the loan which was issued to the firms via his company through a process called bill discounting. However, after a couple of months, when IFCI Factors approached the firms to recover the money, they said they had never signed any deal with Panja’s company.

Probe revealed that invoices and purchase orders submitted by the company to the IFCI Factors for availing of the loan were forged.



courtesy:IndianExpress