CBI has filed a case against hotel directors in Rs. 75 crore fraud case of PSU bank

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has brought a case against two former directors of Maha Associated Hotels Pvt Ltd in a significant effort to combat bank fraud.  Both Yash Deep Sharma and Laxmi Narayan Sharma, who hail from Hyderabad's Gachibowli neighborhood, are charged with defrauding Punjab and Sindh Bank of Rs.75.44 crore.

 Avdhesh Narain Singh, the zonal manager of the bank, filed a complaint, which prompted the CBI's Bank Security and Fraud Branch (BSFB), located in Delhi, to file the FIR.  Charges under IPC Sections 120-B (criminal conspiracy) and 420 (cheating), together with pertinent provisions of the Prevention of Corruption Act, are included in the FIR.  The case also involves a few unidentified private citizens and state employees in addition to the two directors who have been named.

Actual Case

The bank's complaint claims that in 2013, Maha Associated Hotels Pvt Ltd borrowed Rs.75 crore from the Connaught Circus Branch of Punjab and Sindh Bank in New Delhi. In Neemrana, Rajasthan, the loan was intended to finance the building of a hotel, a plaza with food and entertainment, and a hospitality training academy.

However, the bank has claimed that the monies were misappropriated and not used for these initiatives. On December 31, 2016, the account was designated as a non-performing asset (NPA) due to inadequate financial management and loan non-repayment.

What Happened

Maha Associated Hotels Pvt Ltd is not listed as an accused party, despite the fact that the directors are named individually in the complaint.  Under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC), the Jaipur-based business underwent the insolvency process.  A resolution plan for Rs.11.5 crore plus charges for the Corporate Insolvency Resolution Process (CIRP) was authorized by the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) in Jaipur on August 13, 2024.  Regretfully, the bank had little to no security available to recoup the outstanding loan balance.

Recovery of Loan Amount

The bank had obtained a mortgage on Neemrana land and other fixed assets in order to secure the loan when it was initially granted.  However, the bank used the SARFAESI Act to take symbolic ownership of the property in 2017 after the borrowers were unable to repay.  The healing process is still ongoing in spite of this.  The bank requested more than 104 crore in a recovery claim submitted to the Debt Recovery Tribunal (DRT).  That lawsuit has not yet been resolved.