Veteran banker and former chairman of HDFC Ltd Deepak Parekh has said that ICICI Bank had made an offer to take over mortgage lender HDFC Ltd but it was declined. HDFC Ltd, the parent entity of HDFC Bank, later merged with its banking subsidiary to create the country's biggest private sector lender.
The Bombay high court on Thursday dismissed a petition filed by Chanda Kochhar against her termination as the managing director and chief executive officer of ICICI Bank A division bench of Justices N M Jamdar and M S Karnik accepted the bank's contention that Kochhar's petition was not maintainable as the dispute was contractual and concerns a private body.
The lawyer of Videocon Group promoter Venugopal Dhoot on Friday argued before the Bombay high court that the industrialist's arrest in the ICICI Bank loan fraud case was unwarranted as he was cooperating with the probe. The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), on the other hand, claimed that he was trying to avoid probe. Dhoot, arrested by the CBI on December 26, 2022, and presently in judicial custody, has moved the high court seeking to quash the First Information Report, and has also sought interim bail.
The Bombay high court granted interim bail to Videocon Group founder Venugopal Dhoot on Friday, nearly a month after he was arrested by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in the ICICI Bank-Videocon loan fraud case. A division bench of Justices Revati Mohite Dere and P K Chavan granted bail to Dhoot on a surety of Rs one lakh. The court permitted him to furnish cash bail and then deposit the surety amount two weeks thereafter.
Videocon group promoter Venugopal Dhoot on Friday appeared before a court in Mumbai in the alleged ICICI Bank-Videocon money laundering case, and was granted bail.
Kochhar retires by rotation, and being eligible, has offered herself for reappointment as director, said the broking arm in a notice for its Annual General Meeting to be held on August 30
The Bombay high court on Tuesday directed the Central Bureau of Investigation to file by Friday its affidavit in response to a petition of Videocon Group founder Venugopal Dhoot, seeking to quash an FIR registered in a bank loan fraud case, to declare his arrest as "arbitrary and illegal" and to be released on bail. When the plea came up for hearing, advocate Kuldeep Patil asked for one-week time to seek instructions on the same. A division bench of Justices Revati Mohite Dere and P K Chavan said the agency shall file its affidavit by Friday and posted the petition for hearing the same day (January 13).
Its registration is unusual because the firm appears twice in the RoC database, but different identification numbers.
Rajiv Kochhar, who was asked to appear at the CBI office in Mumbai, was examined about the loan and his links with Venugopal Dhoot, the promoter of the Videocon Group, and Videocon.
Chanda Kochhar, the high-profile ex-banker had on November 30 moved the Bombay high court challenging "termination" of her employment by ICICI Bank which also denied her remuneration and clawed back all the bonuses and stock options between April 2009 and March 2018 for her alleged role in granting out of turn loans worth Rs 3,250 crore to the Videocon Group which benefitted her husband Deepak Kochhar. A division Bench of justices Ranjit More and SP Tavade allowed her to implead RBI and directed the apex bank to file its reply by December 16.
Prime Minister's Office wants CBI and tax dept to identify the actual beneficiaries of the transactions made in India and abroad.
The FIR also said chairman of New Development Bank K V Kamath, Goldman Sachs India chairman Sonjoy Chatterjee, Standard Chartered Bank CEO Zarin Daruwala, Tata Capital head Rajiv Sabharwal and Tata Capital senior advisor Homi Khusrokhan need to be investigated.
'... not even a moral one, let alone a legal one.' 'Even if it is assumed that Deepak Kochhar tried to influence his wife into doing something dodgy for his 'social acquaintance', why would she do it?' 'By all accounts she has been granted share options in ICICI Bank of a very substantial amount which easily makes her a multi billion-pati.' 'She did not become CEO against some stiff competition by being stupid and concocting devious cock-and-bull renewable energy stories.' S Murlidharan, former managing director, BNP Paribas, unravels the Deepak Kochhar-Videocon controversy.
One of the reasons why conviction rates in India are poor is that "adventurism and megalomania overtakes our investigators and professionalism takes a back seat," Jaitley said on Twitter.
Kochhar's counsel argued that according to Section 35B (b) of the Banking Regulation Act, prior approval of the RBI is required to terminate the contract of a bank's chairman or managing director. But in this case, the RBI approval came after the termination letter was served.
This was the companies' highest loss in two years.
She received nearly 97.7 per cent of the votes in favour of her re-appointment, while nearly 2.32 per cent votes were cast against her
Until June 2018, the ICICI Bank board had given a clean chit to Kochhar with full backing and had said there was no question of favouritism, nepotism or conflict of interest on her part in granting loans to Videocon Industries or any other company. However, the stance changed soon after the regulatory and probe agencies initiated enquiry in the matter.
The panel is believed to have examined each financial transaction between the Kochhar family and Videocon group, and the suspected trail of properties and assets that the family acquired since Chanda Kochar became ICICI Bank's MD.
The ICICI board, which consists 12 members, is divided on whether Kochhar should be on leave during the internal enquiry
There are allegations of involvement of Kochhar and her family members in a loan provided to Videocon group on a quid pro quo basis.
Kochhar has been issued a showcause notice by the regulator for alleged violation of the code of conduct.
The bank board had decided to launch an enquiry to be headed by an "independent and credible person", to examine and enquire into an anonymous whistle blower complaint alleging that the bank MD & CEO had not adhered to code of conduct
The regulator will now call Chanda and ICICI Bank's representatives for a personal hearing as part of adjudication proceedings launched against them.
Justifying the transfer, the CBI pinned the blame on Mishra for keeping the preliminary enquiry pending without any reasons, they said.
Moreover, all her existing and future entitlements such as any unpaid amounts, unpaid bonuses or increments, unvested and vested and unexercised stock options, and medical benefits will be revoked.
'She was either overconfident that nothing will happen to her or she underestimated the gravity of the allegations.'
Avista helped some companies restructure their debt in such a way that overseas investors had to take a steep haircut
It is alleged that during the tenure of Chanda Kochhar, six loans worth Rs 1,875 crore were cleared for the Videocon Group and its associated companies, in which in two cases she herself was on the sanctioning committees.
'It's still very early. I have just been handed over the matter and therefore I haven't formed any views on it as yet,' Justice B N Srikrishna tells Pavan Lall.
The agency's poor track record in convictions is the only light at the end of a rather long tunnel for the couple, observes Shyamal Majumdar.
The I-T department said NuPower's balance sheet did not substantiate the high premium paid by Singapore-based DH Renewables for its shares, and suspects it could be a case of round-tripping of unaccounted income by NuPower.
The cases under scanner include significant loan exposure of the bank to Videocon way back in 2012 and the alleged involvement of the Kochhar family in restructuring of that loan.
Ranjan was nominated to the board of ICICI Bank on April 7
Interestingly, in March 2018, the same board of ICICI Bank had given a clean chit to Kochhar with full-backing and had said there was no question of favouritism, nepotism or conflicts of interest on her part in granting loans to Videocon Industries or any other company.
NuPower will return loan with interest to consumer durables major by 2021
Regulators and investigators around the world have access to sophisticated tools making it possible to detect white collar crimes. This is where Indian investigators and regulators have been found wanting, says Sudipto Dey.
A list of at least 20 individuals has been sent to the immigration department to prevent them from flying overseas.
The RBI, according to the source, wants details on the procedure followed for credit appraisal by the bank while giving loans to Videocon.
The report concluded that she failed to discharge her fiduciary functions to rescue herself to avoid any conflict of interest.
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