Sources have claimed that the Kochhar couple have said that no favours were given or received from Videocon chief Venugopal Dhoot. ED has asked several questions to which Chanda Kochhar has been unable to answer
New Delhi: The Enforcement Directorate (ED), probing ICICI Bank- Videocon loan case, is in no mood to spare Ex ICICI chairperson Chanda Kochhar and her husband Deepak Kochhar. ED on a third day consecutive day has called the Kochhar couple for questioning and has asked for details and documents regarding the query.
Sources have claimed that the Kochhar couple have said that no favours were given or received from Videocon chief Venugopal Dhoot. ED has asked several questions to which Chanda Kochhar has been unable to answer. She has asked for time.
ED officials also asked about Chanda’s assets and the money through which they have been acquired. On Wednesday, the Kochhar couple will have to face ED officials for hours, sources claimed.
Also read: Enforcement Directorate corners Kochhar couple, orders submission of asset documents
Sources have also claimed that Chanda and her husband are replying to investigators but are not divulging details.
The Kochhar couple have also been questioned in the past at the agency's office in Mumbai, following raids on March 1 at the premises of the Kocchars and those of Dhoot in Mumbai and Aurangabad.
The ED has registered a criminal case under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act earlier this year against the accused. A probe has been ordered into the alleged irregularities and corrupt practices in sanctioning of Rs 1,875 crore loans by the bank to the corporate group.
This ED action was based on a CBI FIR where multiple companies, including Dhoot's Videocon International Electronics Ltd (VIEL) and Videocon Industries Limited (VIL), were named.
The CBI also named Supreme Energy, a company founded by Dhoot, and NuPower Renewables, a company controlled by Deepak Kochhar, in the FIR.
Also read: ICICI Bank-Videocon deal case: ED searches Chanda Kochhar, Venugopal Dhoot’s houses
The initial investigation by the CBI and the ED revealed that from June 2009 to October 2011, the ICICI Bank had allegedly sanctioned six high-value loans to various Videocon Group companies.
It was also alleged that Dhoot invested a large number of funds in Nupower within months after Videocon Group received Rs 3,250 crore as loan from ICICI Bank in 2012 after Chanda took over the post of managing director of the ICICI Bank on May 1, 2009.
Last Updated May 15, 2019, 11:54 AM IST