At least six such appointments were made where these directors had nothing to do with the company’s core operations to hide ownership, evade tax and launder money
While investigating the various companies owned by Deepak Kocchar and the Videocon group, the Enforcement Directorate found that 'dummy' directors has been appointed by these firms, Business Standard reports. At least six such appointments were made where these directors had nothing to do with the company’s core operations to hide ownership, evade tax and launder money, the report stated.
Deepak is former ICICI Bank's Managing Director and CEO Chanda Kochhar’s husband.
These dummy representatives have reportedly admitted that they had signed off on several documents following instructions of their bosses. ED sleuths are learnt to have recorded these statements as part of the probe into the Rs 3,250-crore ICICI Bank-Videocon loan case.
Moneycontrol could not independently verify the report.
On the board of Real Cleantech Private (RCPL), a Videocon group firm, was Lakshmikant Sudhakar Katore, a gardener at Videocon Industries Chairman Venugopal Dhoot’s house. Indian Refrigerator Company, another Videocon group firm, has three names on its board -- Vivek Dattatraya Dharm, Kesharmal Nensukhlal Gandhi and Chetan Ratansinh Mankerni -- all of whom allegedly acted as dummy directors.
Deepak Kochhar’s firms Supreme Energy, Credential Finance and Pacific Capital Services had Neelam Mahesh Advani, Sharad Shankar Mhatre and Umanath Nayak as directors. Neelam Advani, who is also Chanda Kocchar’s sister-in-law, is said to have told the ED in a statement that she had nothing to do with the company and was unaware of this directorship role.
Meanwhile, filings with the Registrar of Companies (RoC) revealed that by 2001, a 17 percent stake in Credential Finance was owned by Videocon, a two percent stake was held by the Kocchar family and Mahesh Chandra Punglia, an adviser to Videocon, owned 0.8 percent stake in the firm.
“We are in the midst of examining the voluminous documents and other evidence we have gathered so far. Credential Finance had never a clear promoter on board and the directors had been holding less than five percent in the company until 2013-14,’’ the article quoted a source in the ED as saying. The enforcement agency has summoned them again this week to question them regarding the statements made by the dummy directors.
Earlier this month, Chanda Kocchar, Deepak Kocchar and Videocon promoter Venugopal Dhoot deposed in connection with the money laundering case involving their business entities. Reports suggest their statement were recorded under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), according to reports.
The three have been grilled by the ED in connection with the alleged corruption case in the past as well. Provisional attachment of assets of the Kochhars and the Videocon Group, a list of which the agency is learnt to have prepared, under the PMLA, has also not been ruled out by sources, the paper reported.India Union Budget 2019: What does Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman have up her sleeve? Click here for top and latest Budget news, views and analyses.
