The Central Bureau of Investigation, or CBI has filed a new case against DHFL promoters Kapil Wadhawan and Dheeraj Wadhawan, officials said on Wednesday, June 22. The case has been registered against the two Dewan Housing Finance Corporation Ltd or DHFL promoters for cheating a consortium of 17 banks led by the Union Bank of India to the tune of Rs 34,615 crore, the officials added.
Following the registration of case, a team of over 50 officials from the agency carried out coordinated searches in Mumbai at 12 locations belonging to listed accused in the FIR which also includes Sudhakar Shetty of Amaryllis Realtors and eight other builders. This is the biggest bank fraud case registered and probed by the top Indian investigation agency. Recently, the CBI had pegged the ABG Shipyards fraud case at Rs 22,842 crore.
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The agency booked the Dewan Housing Finance Corporation Ltd (DHFL), Kapil Wadhawan, the then CMD, Dheeraj Wadhawan, the director and six realtor companies for allegedly being part of criminal conspiracy to cheating the consortium led by the Union Bank of India to the tune of Rs 34,615 crore, the officials said. The agency has acted on a complaint from the bank on February 11, 2022, they said.
The bank has alleged that the company had availed credit facility to the tune of Rs Rs 42,871 crore between 2010 and 2018 from the consortium under various arrangements but started defaulting on commitments of repayment from May, 2019 onwards, the officials said. The accounts were declared non-performing assets at different points of time by lender banks, they said.
Last year, public sector lender Union Bank of India had written to the CBI urging it to investigate the Wadhawan brothers, who were the joint directors of DHFL, for allegedly causing a loss of Rs 40,623.36 crore (as on July 30, 2020) to the consortium of banks led by it. The leading lender in its complain also attached the findings of audit firm KPMG, which was appointed by it. The KPMG prima facie found that there have been “deviation of laid down norms and procedures, manipulation of accounts, concealments, undisclosed bank accounts and misrepresentation” by the DHFL promoters.
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The bank has alleged that KPMG in its audit red flagged diversion of funds in the garb of loans and advances to related and interconnected entities and individuals. The report found that 66 entities having commonalities with DHFL promoters were disbursed Rs 29,100.33 crore against which Rs 29,849 crore remained outstanding.
The Wadhawans are already under CBI probe in connection with alleged corruption involving Yes Bank founder Rana Kapoor. The officials said that this time they acted on the erstwhile DHFL chiefs based on the complaint filed by the Union Bank of India on February 11 this year. The Wadhawan brothers are currently under judicial custody in relation with the cases filed by the Enforcement Directorate and the CBI for the fraud cases involving Yes Bank. According to the deets of that case, the Wadhawan brothers collaborated with Yes Bank co founder Rana Kapoor to carry out the fraud. Kapoor is also lodged at the Taloja prison currently.
(With PTI inputs)
