Starting with a family, which had a dealership of Bajaj Auto's scooters, to becoming the owner of a household name in consumer appliances who could afford to have Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan as the brand ambassador, Venugopal Dhoot's is a story of an aggressive small town businessman's pursuit to be on the top. Now arrested in connection with the ICICI Bank loan fraud case, Venugopal Dhoot during his heydays was not the one to simply sit on small achievements like Videocon becoming the largest television set manufacturer in India.
With the Adani and Jindal groups and Mukesh Ambani-owned Reliance Industries joining the race to buy Videocon Industries' (VIL's) assets, lenders are expecting aggressive bids for VIL's consumer durables and overseas oil assets, which are to be sold in separate auctions. The entire asset sale exercise is expected to be completed in the next six months, said a banker. A promoter entity of Naveen Jindal-owned Jindal Steel and Power has also evinced interest in the second round of bids for VIL's consumer durable business. The deadline to submit bids for VIL's assets ended on February 2.
Market regulator Sebi has sought clarifications from the merchant banker of Videocon D2H Ltd, the satellite television arm of Videocon Group, regarding the company's proposed Rs 700 crore (Rs 7 billion) initial public offer (IPO).
OVL, the overseas arm of state-run explorer Oil & Natural Gas Corporation, and Oil India Limited agreed in June last year to jointly buy Videocon's 10 per cent interest in the Rovuma Area 1 for $2.475 billion.
Former ICICI Bank CEO and MD Chanda Kochhar and her husband Deepak Kochhar were released from jail on Tuesday morning, a day after the Bombay high court granted them interim bail in a loan fraud case, a police official said. Chanda Kochhar walked out of the Byculla women's prison in Mumbai, while her husband was released from the Arthur Road jail, the official said. The CBI arrested Kochhars on December 23, 2022 in connection with the Videocon-ICICI Bank loan case.
IBoard defends MD on nepotism charges, quashes allegations; it also reviewed its internal processes and exposure to the Videocon group
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.
The National Company Law Appellate Tribunal on Monday stayed industrialist Anil Agarwal's Twin Star Technologies' Rs 2,962.02 crore-takeover bid of debt-ridden Videocon Industries. A two-member NCLAT bench headed by its Officiating Chairperson Justice A I S Cheema stayed the order passed by the Mumbai bench of the National Company Law Tribunal on June 9. The National Company Law Appellate Tribunal's (NCLAT) direction came over two petitions filed by unsatisfied creditors -- Bank of Maharashtra and IFCI Ltd. The appellate tribunal has issued notices to the Committee of Creditors, the Resolution Professional of Videocon and the successful resolution applicant Twin Star.
In his statement to the Enforcement Directorate, Dhoot conceded that Rs 64 crore had been transferred to Deepak Kochhar's NuPower Renewables through a web of entities to allegedly acquire wind farm properties.
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.
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.
Prime Minister's Office wants CBI and tax dept to identify the actual beneficiaries of the transactions made in India and abroad.
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.
The Bombay high court on Monday granted bail to former ICICI Bank CEO and MD Chanda Kochhar and her husband Deepak Kochhar in a loan fraud case, saying their arrest was not in accordance with the provisions of law. A division bench of Justices Revati Mohite Dere and P K Chavan held that the arrest of Kochhars was in violation of Section 41A of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC), which mandates sending notice for appearance before the police officer concerned. The couple was arrested by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on December 23, 2022 in connection with the Videocon-ICICI Bank loan case.
We are serious about setting up a bank and use the parent branding that is a household name in India, says Venugopal Dhoot.
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.
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.
The CBI later clarified that Rajiv Kochhar was only called for questioning and has not been apprehended yet.
The Supreme Court on Friday refused to entertain former ICICI bank managing director and CEO Chanda Kochhar's plea seeking retirement benefits from the bank. A bench of Justices Sanjiv Khanna and SVN Bhatti said, "Not a case for interference. We are not inclined to interfere with the high court order. "The special leave petition is dismissed." At the outset, senior advocate Harish Salve, appearing for Kochhar said the high court had dismissed the petition without any discussion or finding.
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 Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) is looking into the funding and transactions of Datacom Services (now Videocon Mobile), which was among the firms awarded a 2G telecom licence in January 2008.
Trai data show the company has no subscribers in Uttar Pradesh East & West and Bihar
Consumer durables major Videocon Industries has acquired Planet M, the music and entertainment retail arm of media house Bennett, Coleman & Co, for Rs 200 crore. The acquisition has been done by NEXT, Videocon's retail chain for consumer electronics and home appliances. Videocon Chairman V N Dhoot said Planet M, which has a huge brand equity, fits in well with the group's retail ambitions. Dhoot said the group plans an over six-fold increase in Planet M's turnover.
Chanda Kochhar, who was arrested for a cash-for-loan scam on Friday, was once a powerful banker and instrumental in making ICICI Bank the country's biggest private sector lender. Kochhar, a regular feature on Forbes top global honchos lists, was arrested by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) along with her husband Deepak Kochhar in connection with alleged cheating and irregularities in loans sanctioned by ICICI Bank to Videocon Group companies. Kochhars were called to the agency headquarters and arrested after a brief questioning session. Her chapter at ICICI Bank ended abruptly in 2018 when the board of directors approved a request from Kochhar to seek early retirement following allegation of corruption and quid pro-quo while extending loans to the now bankrupt Videocon Industries.
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
There are allegations of involvement of Kochhar and her family members in a loan provided to Videocon group on a quid pro quo basis.
Consumer durables major Videocon and Kishore Biyani's Future group have entered into an agreement to source consumer durables.
The agency is also preparing to analyse the details of assets of the Kochhars and others so that they can be provisionally attached under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act
Diversified business group Videocon on Wednesday launched nine mobile handsets and said it plans to sell a million devices per month in the country this year.
An expert committee, set up by the Supreme Court to probe allegations against the Adani group following a bombshell report from a US short seller, has members with potential conflict of interest, a fresh petition filed in the apex court on Monday said.
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).
Vedanta group chairman, Anil Agarwal, 69, is well known for his business journey from a scrap dealer from Bihar to a London-based globe-girdling metal and oil and gas conglomerate with revenues of $19 billion. Now his abilities to keep his group from over-leveraging itself will be put to the test. Over the years, Agarwal, now based in London, set up the conglomerate via acquiring iron ore producer Sesa Goa, Cairn's oil producing assets in India, and Electrosteel Steel.
Confirming the development, Chairman Venugopal Dhoot said, "We will use the CDMA technology for mobile services in the country."
India's largest electronics firm Videocon on Monday said a consortium led by it has reached an agreement to acquire South Korea's debt-burdened Daewoo Electronics for $700 million (Rs 3,150 crore).
The Bombay high court on Thursday said Chanda Kochhar's termination as CEO of ICICI Bank was prima facie 'valid' and dismissed her interim application seeking post-retirement benefits.
The report concluded that she failed to discharge her fiduciary functions to rescue herself to avoid any conflict of interest.
Diversified business group Videocon on Thursday said it aims to become one of the top three mobile handset manufacturers in the country this year.
The Bombay high court on Friday heard prosecution and defence arguments on the applications of former ICICI Bank CEO and MD Chanda Kochhar and her businessman-husband Deepak Kochhar, challenging their arrest by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in an alleged loan fraud case, and reserved its verdict which will be delivered on Monday. The Kochhars, along with Videocon group founder Venugopal Dhoot, were arrested by the CBI late last month for their alleged roles in the case and the trio is currently in jail under judicial custody. The Kochhar couple has termed their arrest as "illegal" on the ground that no sanction was obtained prior to the CBI action as required under provisions of the Prevention of Corruption Act (PCA).
Diversified business group Videocon on Friday said it has obtained licence to start its Direct-To-Home (DTH) services and expects to launch it by mid-September.
Before the pandemic hit the world and led to shutdowns, the company had received nearly half a dozen offers. But bidders are now withdrawing. They want to reassess the situation. They want to conserve cash and avoid acquisition.
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