8 PNB officials, 2 businessmen arrested in bank fraud case

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Wednesday arrested 10 people, including eight Punjab National Bank (PNB) officials and two Directors of Mumbai-based private firm, for alleged misuse of Letter of Undertakings (LoUs) worth over Rs 9 crore.

LoU is a form of bank guarantee through which bank permits a customer to raise money in the form of short-term credit from another Indian bank's foreign branch.

Earlier in March, the CBI, on the basis of a complaint registered by PNB's Brady House branch, had filed a case pertaining to "fraudulent" issuance of two LoUs amounting to Rs 9 crore to Chandri Papers and Allied Products private limited.

The case was filed against the Chandri Papers and Allied Products firm and its Directors Ishwardas Agarwal and Aditya Rasiwasia, who have been taken into custody by the CBI in an operation that held on Tuesday.

As per the officials, the LoUs were issued in April 2017 in favour of SBI, Antwerp, Belgium. Since then, the company did not return the amount, bringing the accountability on the state-run PNB.

The arrested PNB officials include-single-window operators at the branch, Manoj Kharat, Amar Jadhav and Sagar Sawant, manager Yashwant Joshi, chief manager Bechu Tiwari, branch officer Prafful Sawant, branch head Sanjay Prasad, and chief internal auditor Mohinder Sharma.

All the arrested accused have been sent to police custody till December 21.