ICICI-Videocon loan probe: PMLA appellate body upholds ED's property seizure in case against Chanda Kochhar

Time of India

2 days ago

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The Appellate Tribunal under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act has allowed the seizure of properties in a case involving former ICICI Bank chief executive Chanda Kochhar , her husband Deepak Kochhar and Videocon Group promoter Venugopal Dhoot , overturning a ruling of the Adjudicating Authority to release those.In its order on an appeal filed by the Enforcement Directorate that had attached the properties, the tribunal held that the Adjudicating Authority "ignored crucial evidence" and based its ruling on "irrelevant considerations", particularly on the role of Deepak Kochhar in managing NuPower Renewables (NRPL) and a Rs 64 crore loan that the company received from Videocon-linked entities.According to the investigating agencies - ED and the CBI - this ₹ 64 crore was a quid pro quid for helping the Videocon Group get a loan from ICICI Bank where Deepak Kochhar's wife was a top executive. The Kochhars and Dhoot have denied the allegations.The tribunal said the Adjudicating Authority placed undue emphasis on the shareholding structure of NRPL while overlooking material facts, including the control exercised by Deepak Kochhar as its managing director. On paper, the transfer of funds to NRPL may have been shown as from one Videocon Group company to another, "but if the veil is lifted, the affairs were under control of Deepak Kochhar", the tribunal said in its order pronounced recently.The tribunal ruled that the property transactions, including the transfer of a flat at CCI Chambers in South Mumbai were "nothing but proceeds of crime ". It noted that the flat purchased by a Videocon-linked entity for ₹3.25 crore was transferred to a family trust associated with Deepak Kochhar for just ₹11 lakh.It rejected the defence's claim that the sanctioning of the loan to the Videocon Group was a collective decision at ICICI Bank, saying that Chanda Kochhar's active role, lack of disclosure and urgency in approving the loan raised serious concerns. It said as per rules, Chanda Kochhar should not have attended the meeting of a committee that cleared the loan, but she not only participated but also sanctioned the loan under the urgent category."This is taken to be nothing but commission of crime which includes even the offence under Section 420 IPC (cheating and dishonestly inducing delivery of property)," the order states.It upheld the Adjudicating Authority's decision declining to confirm the attachment of ₹ 10.5 lakh seized during a raid on a Kochhar-linked company but confirmed the provisional attachment of all other properties.Holding that it did not find any illegality in the attachment, the tribunal said it "rather find perverse finding in the hands of the Adjudicating Authority on all the issues relevant to the case".