On August 20, 2018, Moneycontrol reported that fresh trouble is around the corner for Naresh Goyal-owned Jet Airways as the Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA) has opened a preliminary inquiry into the carrier on suspicion it siphoned off funds.
Shares of Jet Airways were trading lower by 2 percent as investors reacted negatively to news reports of a siphoning off probe into the airline.
The stock touched an intraday high of Rs 298.00 and an intraday low of Rs 293.75.
On August 20, 2018, Moneycontrol reported that fresh trouble is around the corner for Naresh Goyal-owned Jet Airways as the Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA) has opened a preliminary inquiry into the carrier on suspicion it siphoned off funds.
A senior official confirmed to Moneycontrol that the Mumbai Registrar of Companies (RoC) will inspect Jet’s books of accounts.
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An email to Jet Airways seeking comment did not elicit a response at the time of publishing. NSE later sought clarification on this article, to which the airline replied saying it had not received any communication from the MCA.
A source close to the development told Moneycontrol that the RoC is also coordinating with market regulator SEBI over its inquiry of Jet's books.
Further, the RoC may also look into the role of auditors. Arvind Gupta, who recently became famous as the whistleblower in the ICICI Bank-Videocon case, recently wrote to the Finance Ministry, SEBI, RBI and the Chief Vigilance Commission, complaining of irregularities.
Gupta questioned the audit committee's inability to "prevent the promoters of Jet Airways from siphoning off Rs 5,125 crore from the companies".
According to Gupta, the company, under its Jet Airways and Jet Lite brands, undertook transactions "under the guise of selling and distribution expenses and other means" with companies privately owned by the promoter.
However, the MCA’s probe is independent of Gupta’s complaint.