New Delhi: The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Thursday registered a fresh case against Anil Ambani in connection with alleged loan fraud involving Reliance Communications.
The case follows a complaint filed by Bank of Baroda on February 24. The agency has booked Ambani, the promoter and former chairman of RCom, along with the company and others. The FIR includes charges of criminal conspiracy, cheating under the IPC, and criminal misconduct under the Prevention of Corruption Act, the CBI said in a press release.
According to the complaint, Bank of Baroda suffered a loss of over Rs 2,220 crore. The bank alleged that loans taken by Reliance Communications were diverted and misused through fictitious transactions involving related parties. The FIR also states that the company manipulated its books of accounts to conceal irregularities.
The loan account had turned into a Non-Performing Asset in 2017. However, a petition filed by Anil before the Bombay High Court resulted in a stay on declaring the account as fraudulent. The court vacated the stay on February 23. Bank of Baroda then lodged the complaint, and the CBI registered the case.
The agency had earlier registered another case against Reliance Communications based on a complaint by the State Bank of India, which led to a consortium of 11 banks. Bank of Baroda was not part of that consortium. Officials said this new case relates to a separate loan availed from Bank of Baroda, the former Vijaya Bank, and the former Dena Bank. Vijaya Bank and Dena Bank have since merged with Bank of Baroda.
After registering the FIR, the CBI conducted searches at Anil Ambani’s residence and at the registered offices of Reliance Communications. Investigators recovered documents linked to the loan transactions.
The investigation remains ongoing.
