Ensure fraudulent promoters don't get richer: Fadnavis

Citing the infamous Kingfisher Airlines loan default case, Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis today said there is an urgent need to ensure that the money lent by banks is put to productive use instead of helping fraudulent promoters get richer.
"In the case of Kingfisher Airlines, we could see that the company is going to the dogs...The company is getting poorer, the banks are getting poorer but those who own the company are getting richer," Fadnavis said at the inaugural event of the seventh conference of CBI and Indian Banks' Association here.
He said this money should be ploughed back for productive use, failing which the "financial flexibility of the banks will come into stress".

He also said there should be a proper framework to ensure that situations like Kingfisher are dealt with quickly and public and investors' money is put to better use.
The grounded KFA owes a consortium of 17 banks led by SBI over Rs 7,000 crore in what was described as "fraud" by CBI Director Anil Sinha earlier in the day.
Drawing from his interactions with India Inc, Fadnavis said businessmen feel the financial flexibility in the country is not commensurate with the growth aspirations.

"The economy is in a catch-22 situation. There are lots of opportunities, but the money is blocked in frauds," he said.

Financial irregularities are not a stigma and there is a need to confront them rather than pushing them under the carpet, he said.
While dealing with financial frauds, the strategy should not only be to arrest the person but also recover the money, he said.
Fadnavis warned that while global investors are interested in India, they look at the "entire framework", including enforcement of laws, while making the decision to invest in the country.
Stressing the need to acquire the capacity to handle financial crimes, Fadnavis said emerging trends in cyber crimes should be studied very seriously.
The role of consultants is also very important and we need professionals who do the work by adhering to laws rather than those who get things done, he said.