New Delhi: A day after the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) registered an FIR against ICICI Bank’s former MD and CEO Chanda Kochhar, her husband Deepak Kochhar and Videocon Group’s VN Dhoot for alleged cheating and corruption, the investigating officer of the case was transferred.
According to reports, SP Sudhanshu Dhar Mishra who was with the Banking and Securities Fraud Cell of the CBI in Delhi, was transferred to the agency’s Economic Offences Branch in Jharkhand a day after signing the FIR on January 22.
The FIR was filed against the Kochhars and Venugopal Dhoot on Thursday for allegedly clearing six loans worth Rs 1,875 crore to the Videocon group during Chanda Kochhar’s tenure at the helm of ICICI. Dhoot’s Videocon group, and Nupower Renewables a company controlled by Deepak Kochhar have also been made filed in the FIR.
The agency has levelled Indian Penal Code sections related to criminal conspiracy, cheating and provisions of the Prevention of Corruption Act on all the accused.
It is alleged that Dhoot had invested in Deepak Kochhar’s company Nupower through his firm Supreme Energy a quid pro quo to loans cleared by the ICICI Bank after Chanda Kochhar took over as the CEO of the bank on May 1, 2009.
Through a preliminary enquiry by the CBI, the agency learnt that Dhoot had allegedly paid Rs 64 crore to Deepak Kochhar in the form of investment in his company Nupower in return for loans worth Rs 3,250 crore cleared by Chanda Kochhar.
The CBI probe into the matter began nearly 13 months ago in the form of a preliminary enquiry, which it registered on a complaint that Dhoot had allegedly paid Rs 64 crore to Deepak Kochhar in the form of investment in his company Nupower in return for loans worth Rs 3,250 crore cleared by Chanda Kochhar.
According to sources six loans worth Rs 1,875 crore were sanctioned to the Videocon group and companies associated with it between June, 2009 and October, 2011 in alleged violation of laid-down policies of the ICICI bank.
