The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has brought a case against the former managing director of Unitech Ltd., Sanjay Chandra, his father Ramesh Chandra and his older brother Ajay Chandra for allegedly cheating Canara Bank out of Rs 198 crore, said people familiar with the development.
Ironically, Sanjay Chandra was released from Tihar jail after 43 months on Friday night after a trial court in Delhi granted him provisional relief for four weeks considering his aggravated medical condition. He was last arrested in April 2017 by the Economic Crimes Wing of the Delhi Police (EOW) for allegedly misleading home buyers who had invested in company projects.
Unitech Ltd, which used to be a construction giant before the company got caught up in a 2G spectrum scam, is facing multiple investigations from various agencies including CBI, ED and the Delhi Police.
Sanjay Chandra is already facing trial for a 2G spectrum scam. He was arrested for the first time in 2011 by the CBI for allegedly conspiring to obtain a telecommunications license for his company.
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To bring relief to some 30,000 homebuyers, in January this year, the Center decided to take over the business and appoint nominee directors so that unfinished housing projects can be completed. The measure was approved by the Supreme Court.
In its latest FIR, filed on the Canara Bank complaint, the CBI has alleged that Unitech had made use of different lines of credit that it did not repay. As directors of the company, Sanjay Chandra, Ramesh Chandra and Ajay Chandra had given personal and corporate guarantees to the bank and had mortgaged properties as collateral.
In addition, he has alleged that the company illegally sold the mortgaged properties as collateral without informing the bank.
The Supreme Court had appointed Ms. Grant Thornton to conduct a forensic audit of Unitech, which revealed that the company had diverted, diverted and embezzled funds.
“Of the Rs 14,270 crore collected from 29,800 home buyers, around Rs 5,063.05 was potentially not used for the construction / execution of 74 identified projects. Similarly, Unitech used Rs 1,805.86 crore from six financial institutions, of which Rs 763.06 crore was not used for projects, ”states the complaint filed by Canara Bank, reviewed by HT.
The Grant Thornton report further revealed that between 2007 and 2019, three Unitech subsidiaries made investments of Rs 1,745 crore in 10 companies in Cyprus, it added.
When contacted, Unitech’s attorney, Vijay Aggarwal, declined to comment on the new case.
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