The CBI has taken over the investigations of a Rs525 crore alleged loan default case previously registered at the Dadar police against officials of the Cox & Kings Company on the complaint of Ashish Vinod Joshi, the then chief vigilance officer of Yes Bank.
According to sources, those named in the FIR registered by the CBI are Cox & Kings promoter and director Ajay Ajit Peter Kerkar, Urshila Kerkar and three others.
“Pursuant to the notification of Government of Maharashtra, Home Department dated May 29, 2023, the Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions (Department of Personnel and Training), Government of India has issued notification dated April 26, 2024, for investigation into the offence dated June 23, 2021, of Dadar police station, Ajay Ajit Peter Kerkar (promoter / director), Urshila Kerkar (promoter / director), three others, unknown others and unknown bank officials on the complaint of Ashish Vinod Joshi, the then CVO of Yes Bank Limited, Mumbai. Accordingly, the case has been taken over for investigation by the CBI,” an agency official said.
According to the sources, the bank had filed a complaint for fraud by Cox & Kings to whom it had granted credit facilities in the nature of working capital demand loan, short term loan, cash credit and temporary overdraft. “The account had been reported as fraud to the Reserve Bank of India on February 7, 2020, with an amount of Rs525 crore on grounds of alleged misrepresentation of material facts in the financial statements,” another official said.
The CBI has now registered an FIR under sections 420 (cheating and dishonestly inducing delivery of property), 465 (forgery), 467 (forgery of valuable security, will, etc), 468 (forgery for purpose of cheating), 471 (using genuine a forged) of the Indian Penal Code and sections of the Prevention of Corruption Act.
