Former MP, 2 Others Arrested In Rs 500-Crore Andaman & Nicobar Bank Fraud
The Enforcement Directorate has arrested three persons, including a former Member of Parliament, in connection with a massive bank fraud case.
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- From: India News Bull
The Enforcement Directorate has apprehended three individuals, including a former Parliament member, in relation to a substantial bank fraud investigation.
The agency's Kolkata Zonal Office detained Kuldeep Rai Sharma, former Member of Parliament from Andaman and Nicobar Islands and ex-Chairman of Andaman and Nicobar State Cooperative Bank (ANSCBL); K Murugan, Managing Director of ANSCBL; and K Kalaivanan, who served as Loan Officer at ANSCBL.
The arrests took place on September 17 under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002. Following the arrests, a special PMLA court has ordered Kuldeep Rai Sharma and Kalaivanan to remain in ED custody for eight days. These arrests mark the first instance of the ED making apprehensions in the Union Territory of Andaman and Nicobar Islands.
The ED's investigation originates from an FIR registered by the Crime and Economic Offences Cell of the Andaman and Nicobar Police against various private individuals and officials of ANSCBL.
According to the ED, the bank officials, under Mr. Sharma's leadership, allegedly created over 100 shell companies and approved loans that severely violated banking regulations. These loans, totaling more than Rs 500 crore, were purportedly diverted for personal benefit. Investigators claim that approximately Rs 230 crore was misappropriated specifically to benefit Mr. Sharma and his close associates.
The evidence indicates that Mr. Murugan and Mr. Kalaivanan also illicitly obtained loans in their relatives' names and facilitated loan approvals for associates in exchange for a 5 percent commission, typically collected in cash or channeled through shell companies.
Previously, the agency conducted searches across 21 locations on July 31 and August 1, targeting shell companies connected to Mr. Sharma and his collaborators. Additional searches are currently being conducted at three premises in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands to track further fund diversions.
The ED believes that significant amounts were withdrawn in cash.