CBI Informs Court: ICICI Bank Board Gave Sanction To Prosecute Chanda Kochhar in Loan Fraud Case

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) recently informed a special court that it received a sanction from the ICICI Bank’s board to prosecute Chanda Kochhar, the former CEO and MD of the bank, in connection with a case of alleged cheating and irregularities in loans sanctioned by the bank to Videocon Group companies.

The investigative agency, through its special public prosecutor A Limosin, informed the court that ICICI Bank’s board granted permission to prosecute Kochhar on April 22 of this year. The board acknowledged the presence of a possible quid pro quo arrangement, leading to their decision.

In relation to the Vodafone fraud case, the central investigative agency apprehended Chanda Kochhar, Deepak Kochhar, and Venugopal Dhoot, the founder of Videocon group, last year.

The Bombay High Court later granted interim relief to the Kochhars and strongly criticized the CBI for their “casual and mechanical” arrest without proper consideration.

In the First Information Report (FIR) filed in 2019, the CBI had mentioned the Kochhar couple, along with Venugopal Dhoot and several companies including Nupower Renewables (NRL) managed by Deepak Kochhar, Supreme Energy, Videocon International Electronics Ltd, and Videocon Industries Limited, as the accused.

The FIR was registered under the relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) related to criminal conspiracy and the provisions of the Prevention of Corruption Act. The CBI’s allegations state that ICICI Bank sanctioned credit facilities of ₹3,250 crore to Videocon Group companies promoted by Dhoot, which is believed to be a violation of the Banking Regulation Act, RBI guidelines, and the bank’s credit policy.