Andhra Bank plunges nearly 7%; stock hits multi-year low

Shares of Andhra Bank tumbled nearly 7 per cent today after the Enforcement Directorate filed a charge sheet against a former director in an alleged bank fraud case involving a Gujarat-based pharma firm.
The stock slumped 6.88 per cent to end at Rs 35.85 on BSE. During the day, it dived 15.45 per cent to Rs 32.55 - its multi-year low level.
At NSE, shares of the company plunged 6.74 per cent to close at Rs 35.95.
The company's market valuation declined by Rs 231 crore to Rs 3,128.99 crore.
In terms of equity volume, 44.43 lakh shares of the company were traded on BSE and over 5 crore shares changed hands at NSE during the day.

BSE has sought clarification from Andhra Bank on this issue.

Shares of Sterling Biotech also fell 4.83 per cent to Rs 2.76 on BSE.
The final report was filed before Additional Sessions Judge Sidharth Sharma against Anup Prakash Garg under the sections of Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).
The charge sheet, filed through ED's special public prosecutor Nitesh Rana, alleged that during the probe, the agency came across "certain entries" in a diary seized by the Income Tax Department in 2011 which showed various payments totalling about Rs 1.52 crore made to one "Mr Garg, Director, Andhra Bank" by Chetan Jayantilal Sandesara and Nitin Jayantilal Sandesara, directors Sterling Biotech, between 2008 and 2009.

Meanwhile, selling was also seen in other PSU bank stocks, with IDBI Bank plunging 8.49 per cent, Bank of Maharashtra 3.04 per cent, Bank of India 2.51 per cent, Central Bank of India 2.22 per cent, PNB 0.94 per cent and State Bank of India 0.12 per cent on BSE.