Former ICICI Bank CEO and MD Chanda Kochhar was granted bail by a special PMLA court in Mumbai on Friday in connection with the ICICI Bank-Videocon money laundering case. The special court for Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) had on January 30 summoned Chanda Kochhar, her husband Deepak Kochhar, Videocon Group promoter Venugopal Dhoot and other accused in the case after taking cognisance of the Enforcement Directorate's (ED) charge sheet.
The agency has also named companies Nupower Renewables, Supreme Energy, Videocon International Electronics Ltd and Videocon Industries limited as accused in the FIR registered under IPC sections related to criminal conspiracy and provisions of prevention of corruption act.
ICICI Bank has quashed rumours of favouritism, nepotism and quid pro quo. The bank clarified that while Chanda Kochhar was on the credit committee, she was not the chairperson. Videocon Chairman Venugopal Dhoot said there was no impropriety in the deal.
The Bombay high court on Thursday granted bail to Deepak Kochhar, husband of former ICICI Bank CEO Chanda Kochhar, in a money laundering case registered by the Enforcement Directorate (ED). Kocchar had approached the high court after a special court in Mumbai rejected his bail in December last year. Justice P D Naik of the high court granted bail to him on merits on Thursday.
The regulator in its notice alleged violations of the code of conduct because Chanda Kochhar reportedly had not disclosed the conflict of interest arising out of business dealings among ICICI Bank, Videocon and NuPower Renewables, led by her husband, Deepak Kochhar.
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.
A special court in Mumbai on Tuesday remanded Deepak Kochhar, husband of former ICICI Bank CEO Chanda Kochhar, to ED custody till October 17. Deepak Kochhar was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate in September under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) in the ICICI Bank-Videocon money laundering case.
A Mumbai court on Tuesday rejected a bail plea of businessman Deepak Kochhar, husband of former ICICI Bank CEO Chanda Kochhar and an accused in a money laundering case. He was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in September under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) in the alleged ICICI Bank-Videocon money laundering case. Special PMLA judge P P Rajvaidya rejected the `regular' bail application of Deepak Kochhar, filed on merits of the case as against technical grounds.
Prime Minister's Office wants CBI and tax dept to identify the actual beneficiaries of the transactions made in India and abroad.
The government on Wednesday announced the appointment of veteran banker K V Kamath as chairperson of the newly set up Rs 20,000 crore development finance institution NaBFID to catalyse investment in the funds-starved infrastructure sector. Parliament had in March cleared the National Bank for Financing Infrastructure and Development (NaBFID) Bill 2021 to support the development of long-term non-recourse infrastructure financing in India, including the development of the bonds and derivatives markets necessary for infrastructure financing.
The ED, early this year, also attached assets worth Rs 78 crore "in possession of" Chanda Kochhar, Deepak Kochhar and the companies owned and controlled by him.
ED orders Chanda Kochhar to appear with asset lists also provide income-tax returns in her individual capacity and of companies if she was a director or held any position.
In Chanda's defence, one can always say, why would the Videocon Group take care of her husband as a quid pro quo to get a loan? After all, the group has taken money from the entire banking industry and ICICI Bank's share in the pie is not even 10 per cent. So, if it had a quid pro quo with Chanda to get the money, it must have had similar arrangements with other banks, too. If this is not the case, one must accept that it had got money from all banks, including ICICI, without any under-the-table conditions, points out Tamal Bandyopadhyay.
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 Modi government needs some big private sector trophies to affirm its anti-corruption credentials before the polls.' 'So on whose neck will the sword fall next?' 'To that extent, the outing of the ICICI Bank-Videocon story is cathartic,' says Shekhar Gupta.
Busting a major 'front running' case in the stock market, Sebi on Friday ordered impounding of unlawful gains worth nearly Rs 15 crore (Rs 150 million) from brokerage firm Sharekhan and 15 other entities.