Ahmedabad/Surat: A special Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) court in Ahmedabad on Friday convicted and sentenced three retired officials of Punjab National Bank (PNB), along with five private individuals and a company, in a bank fraud case.
The case involved the sanctioning of credit facilities on the basis of forged documents, resulting in a loss of Rs 156.98 lakh (approximately Rs 1.57 crore) plus interest to the bank.
The convicted bank officials are Gurinder Singh, then Assistant General Manager (retired), K.G.C.S. Iyer, then Chief Manager (retired), and K.E. Surendiranath, then Senior Manager (retired).
The court sentenced each of them to two years’ rigorous imprisonment and imposed a fine of Rs 1 lakh each.
Among the private accused, Sanjay Patel, Director of Jalpa Enterprise in Surat, was sentenced to three years’ rigorous imprisonment with a fine of Rs 50,000.
Satish Davra, proprietor of Bapa Sitaram Enterprise in Surat, received two years’ rigorous imprisonment with a fine of Rs 50,000.
Hitesh Domadiya of H. Domadiya and Co. in Surat was sentenced to three years’ rigorous imprisonment with a fine of Rs 1 lakh.
Vaishali Davra, proprietor of V.S. Textiles in Surat, and Ramila Bhikadiya, proprietor of Priyanshi Textiles, were each sentenced to two years’ rigorous imprisonment with a fine of Rs 50,000.
The court also imposed a fine of Rs 50,000 on Jalpa Enterprise.
According to the CBI, the case was registered on August 22, 2016, against Shailesh Satasiya, proprietor of Shree Kali Textiles, along with other private persons and unknown public servants.
The agency stated that the accused had applied on July 10, 2011, for a term loan of Rs 370 lakh (Rs 3.70 crore) and a cash credit limit of Rs 40 lakh for the purchase of 44 water jet loom machines and for business operations.
The CBI further stated that the credit facilities were sanctioned on July 29, 2011, following recommendations by the then Senior Manager and Chief Manager, and approval by the then Assistant General Manager.
The loan was secured against the machinery and collateral in the form of immovable properties, including plots and residential flats.
During the investigation, the agency found that forged and fabricated documents had been submitted to the bank and were treated as genuine without proper verification.
It was also alleged that the bank officials concerned failed to adhere to established banking guidelines while processing the loan.
This resulted in wrongful gain to the accused persons and a corresponding loss to the bank. The CBI completed its investigation and filed a charge sheet on June 29, 2016.
After the trial, the court held all the accused guilty and passed the sentence accordingly.
(IANS)
