In Another Bank Scam, Amarinder Singh's Son-In-Law Among 11 Named By CBI

Hapur, Uttar Pradesh: Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh's son-in-law is among the 11 persons accused of causing a loss of Rs 109 crore to the Oriental Bank of Commerce, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) said. The probe agency has registered a case of fraud against Simbhaoli Sugars Limited -- a private sugar-manufacturing firm based in Uttar Pradesh's Simbhaoli -- its top officers, including the CMD, CFO, CEO and directors, and unknown bank officials.

The CBI has charged them with criminal conspiracy and cheating. Gurpal Singh, one of the deputy directors, is married to Captain Singh's daughter Jai Inder Kaur. Gurpal Singh is on the board of directors of eight companies in total.

Simbhaoli Sugars Limited was granted a loan of around Rs 150 crore in 2011, to finance over 5,700 sugarcane farmers under a Reserve Bank of India (RBI) scheme. The money, meant for farmers, was received between January and March 2012, but never reached them. It was allegedly diverted to the company account, CBI officials said. The account was declared a non-performing asset (NPA) in March 2015, and a fraud in June 2015.

However, months before the account was declared an NPA, the same bank financed another loan of Rs 110 crore to the sugar company under multiple banking arrangements to pay back the earlier loan. The second corporate loan, too, was declared an NPA in November 2016.

The Oriental Bank of Commerce registered a complaint against Simbhaoli Sugars Limited in November last year. The CBI, however, registered an FIR on Thursday. The agency raided eight locations related to the company on Sunday, including six in Delhi and one each in Hapur and Noida. CBI officials say documents collected during the raids are being scrutinised. People will be called in for questioning based after their thorough study.