Exporters flee country after cheating 6 banks; SBI files complaint
Three promoters of a Delhi-based basmati rice export firm have fled the country with over Rs. 400 crore in unpaid bank loans, officials said on Saturday. The State Bank of India (SBI) has filed a complaint against the firm, Ram Dev International Limited, with the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI). The firm was classified as a non-performing asset (NPA) back in 2016.
The SBI filed the complaint against Ram Dev International on February 25, four years after the firm was classified as an NPA. The SBI approached the CBI after realizing that the prospect of recovering the loans was "bleak" since the accused sold off most of their properties before fleeing India, officials told NDTV. The CBI filed a case in the matter on April 28.
Based on SBI's complaint, the CBI has booked the company; its directors Naresh Kumar, Suresh Kumar, and Sangita; along with unknown public servants, NDTV reported. The accused have been slapped with multiple charges including forgery, cheating, criminal breach of trust, and corruption.
The firm is being investigated by the CBI for allegedly cheating six banks to the tune of Rs. 414 crore. The firm allegedly borrowed Rs. 173.11 crore from SBI, Rs. 76.09 crore from Canara Bank, Rs. 64.31 crore from Union Bank of India, Rs. 51.31 crore from Central Bank of India, Rs. 36.91 crore from Corporation Bank, and Rs. 12.27 crore from IDBI Bank.
According to NDTV, the SBI's complaint to the CBI said the bank was classified as an NPA on January 27, 2016, with an outstanding of Rs. 173.11 crore. A special audit by the banks had found that the accused had falsified accounts, fudged balance sheets, and illegally removed the plant and the machinery in order to gain unlawfully at the cost of bank funds.
The company's members were found missing during a joint inspection in August and October 2016, the SBI reportedly said in its complaint. The bank said the directors' "missing" status was confirmed last year due to another case that reached the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT).
Reportedly, Ram Dev International was taken to the NCLT by another company named Mussadi Lal Krishna Lal over a Rs. 30 lakh payment default. The tribunal had issued warrants to the three directors thrice, starting May 2018, however, they could not be traced. In December 2018, the tribunal was told that the directors have fled the country and reached Dubai.
