Former Executives Charged in Rs 1,028 Crore Bank Fraud

The CBI filed a chargesheet against former executives of Fedders Electric and Engineering for alleged criminal conspiracy and cheating, causing a Rs 1,028 crore loss to a bank consortium led by SBI. The investigation was limited to private individuals due to lack of permission to probe SBI officials.

In a significant legal development, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has filed a chargesheet against former executives of Fedders Electric and Engineering and several others. The charges relate to a massive bank fraud amounting to Rs 1,028 crore, alleged to have been committed through criminal conspiracy and cheating a consortium of banks led by the State Bank of India (SBI).

The chargesheet, filed under relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code, names former CFO Akhter Aziz Siddiqui, former Director Sham Sundar Gaur, Bharat Punj, Brijesh Chand Mathur, Manoj Kumar, Saurabh Kithania, and Prateek Kithania. Due to lack of mandated approval under Section 17-A of the Prevention of Corruption Act, the investigation into SBI officials was restricted, focusing solely on private executives instead.

The court noted that although permission to investigate SBI officials under the Prevention of Corruption Act was denied, this does not restrict investigating them under IPC sections. The case has been transferred to a regular court as no Prevention of Corruption provisions were invoked, with further proceedings pending.

(With inputs from agencies.)