Tuesday, Apr 23, 2024 | Last Update : 08:44 PM IST
10 PSU banks under CBI lens
The CBI, which is investigating Rs 6,000 crore suspicious remittances case at a Bank of Baroda (BoB) branch in Delhi, is all set to probe similar irregularities in at least 10 more public sector banks
The CBI, which is investigating Rs 6,000 crore suspicious remittances case at a Bank of Baroda (BoB) branch in Delhi, is all set to probe similar irregularities in at least 10 more public sector banks.
According to sources role of senior officials of several other public sector banks are now under the scanner of the agency. “The agency is preparing to start a separate probe to find-out similar irregularities in other public sector banks,” sources said.
Investigations by the agency have revealed that 59 current account holders and unknown bank officials of the BoB branch in Ashok Vihar allegedly conspired to send overseas remittances, mostly to Hong Kong, of Foreign Exchange worth approximately Rs 6,000 crore in illegal and irregular manner, through 6,255 transfers during May 2014-July 2015, in violation of established banking norms under the garb of payments towards suspected non-existent imports, they added.
The CBI recently registered a case under Sections 120-B (criminal conspiracy), 420 (cheating) of the IPC and the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988, against 59 current account holders and unknown bank officials and private persons on a complaint from BoB.
Investigations revealed that the accused had abused their official position and in conspiracy with each other and with the said account holders had allegedly cheated and misappropriated the bank funds to the tune of Rs 13.75 crores, thereby allegedly causing loss to Bank of Baroda, sources in the agency said.
“Accounts were allegedly opened either in fictitious names or in the names of persons who were employed in different companies. Forged and fake identity papers like PAN cards and voter ID cards were allegedly used for opening the accounts in fictitious names,” sources said.
Meanwhile, the Enforcement Directorate (ED), which is also probing the case, is all set to send judicial requests to the authorities concerned in Hong Kong and the UAE to get details about certain individuals based there as part of its investigations into the case.
