CBI raids YSR Congress candidate in loan default case

The CBI on Tuesday searched the residences and offices of YSR Congress candidate from Narsapuram, K Raghurama Krishnam Raju, for alleged loan default of over Rs 947 crore, agency officials said.

Raju, who returned to YSR Congress in March, has contested this Lok Sabha election from Narsapuram constituency in Andhra Pradesh.

The agency has alleged that Raju's company Ind Barath group had taken loans worth over Rs 2,655 crore from three non-banking financial companies -- Power Finance Corporation, Rural Electrification Corporation Limited and India Infrastructure Finance Company Ltd.

It is alleged that the company defaulted in payments of Rs 947 crore which turned into non-performing assets, they said.

The CBI had recently registered an FIR on the basis of which it carried out searches at four offices and two residences of Raju on Tuesday, the officials said.

The agency has booked the company Ind Barath Power Limited, its Directors Raju, Madhusudan Reddy, another Ind Barath Power Infra Ltd and Axis Bank, besides unidentified persons.

The loans were cleared for 666 MW Coal based thermal power project in Tuticorin, Tamil Nadu for which a Trust and Retention Account (TRA) Agreement was executed between the borrowers and PFC, Axis Bank, Punjab National Bank, South Indian, Bank, State Bank of Hyderabad, Indian Overseas Bank, Bank of Baroda, and Andhra Bank on February 23, 2011.

The agency has taken note of complaint from NBFC lenders which has alleged that officials of Axis Bank in order to help Raju, its companies and their directors colluded with them in diverting and siphoning of funds thereby committing criminal breach of trust, allowed operations in the account as a normal current account and transferred the loan amount to different accounts of borrower.

The FIR alleged that the accused have indulged in misrepresentation, cheating, forgery, criminal breach of trust and thereby causing huge wrongful financial losses to the lenders.