Rs 411-crore fraud: SBI approaches CBI as three loan defaulters flee India

Besides SBI, other members of the consortium that has been cheated are Canara Bank, Union Bank of India, IDBI, Central Bank of India and Corporation Bank

Three promoters of Ram Dev International, recently booked by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) for allegedly cheating a consortium of six banks to the tune of Rs 411 crore, had already fled the country before State Bank of India reached the agency with a complaint, officials said on Saturday.

The CBI had recently booked the company engaged in export of Basmati rice to West Asian and European countries and its directors Naresh Kumar, Suresh Kumar and Sangita on the basis of a complaint from SBI, which suffered a loss of more than Rs 173 crore, they said.

The company had three rice milling plants, besides eight sorting and grading units in Haryana's Karnal district, besides offices in Saudi Arabia and Dubai for trading purposes, the SBI complaint said.

Besides SBI, other members of the consortium that had been cheated are Canara Bank, Union Bank of India, IDBI, Central Bank of India and Corporation Bank, they said. The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) did not carry out any searches in the matter because of the coronavirus-induced lockdown, the officials said.

The agency will start the process of summoning the accused, incase they do not join the investigation, appropriate legal action will be initiated, they said. According to the complaint filed by SBI, the account had become non-performing asset (NPA) on January 27, 2016.

The banks conducted a joint inspection of properties in August and October, nearly 7-9 months later only to find Haryana Police security guards deployed there, they said.

"On inquiry, it has been come to notice that borrowers are absconding and have left the country," the complaint filed on February 25, 2020, after over a year of account becoming NPA, the officials said.

The complaint alleged that borrowers had removed entire machinery from old plant and fudged the balance sheets in order to unlawfully gain at the cost of banks' funds, it said.

Earlier this week, the CBI had already registered a case against Ram Dev International Ltd., and its directors for allegedly cheating State Bank of India.

The case against the company based in Rohini locality of the national capital and its directors were registered on a complaint received from State Bank of India, Karnal branch. The directors allegedly cheated the bank by way of unauthorised removal of plant and machinery from the factory premises which were hypothecated to the bank.

The directors also allegedly showed disbursement of loan from the bank as capital infusion via circular movement of fund transfers, availed EPC disbursements against same security/ proforma invoices, submitted fake proforma invoices and showed non-existent entities as debtors, CBI spokesperson R K Gaur said.