An FIR has been filed by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) against the former directors of Nataraj Rice Mills Private Limited, as well as a number of other people and related businesses, for allegedly causing the Bank of India to lose Rs 19.30 crore. The alleged financial fraud is the subject of a thorough investigation by the CBI's Economic Offences Wing in Kolkata.
The role of corporate guarantor firms and unidentified public employees, such as bank officials, will also be investigated. The case concerns the Bank of India's Clubside branch in Ranchi, which was formerly called the Mid-Corporate branch. The company allegedly borrowed money from the bank to buy paddy, but it transferred a large amount of that money to its affiliated businesses. Additionally, evidence of purported financial document manipulation has been discovered by investigators.
A rice mill in Dakra, in the Lakhisarai district of Bihar, was run by Nataraj Rice Mills Private Limited, a Kolkata-registered company. The Bank of India provided the company with credit facilities totaling Rs 20.43 crore between 2013 and 2025. This comprised a working capital term loan of Rs 3.43 crore and a cash credit facility of Rs 17 crore. These loans were approved by the bank to support the business's operations, which included buying paddy, milling rice, and supplying rice to the wholesale market.
Instead of using the loan funds for the authorized business purposes, it is alleged that the company's management transferred them to the accounts of affiliated businesses and other related entities. On June 24, 2025, the Bank of India designated the company's account as a Non-Performing Asset (NPA) due to its prolonged failure to repay the outstanding loans. The outstanding balance at that point was Rs 19.30 crore. The investigation also showed that about four months prior to the account being deemed non-performing, the company's former directors had resigned.
The company's cash transactions during the November 2016 demonetization period have also come under scrutiny from the forensic audit report. As of November 8, 2016, the company's cash balance was Rs 1.09 crore, according to the report written by auditor M/s NH Agarwal & Associates. Rs 1.01 crore of this sum was kept in old Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 banknotes. According to the audit report, after the announcement of demonetization, the management of the company allegedly deposited the full amount into bank accounts.
To ascertain whether these transactions were utilized to bring undeclared funds into the official banking system, investigating agencies are looking into them. The company's short-term loans and advances are the subject of another significant irregularity found in the forensic audit. The report states that during the 2016–17 fiscal year, these loans and advances totaled just Rs 45 lakh. But by the 2022–2023 fiscal year, the sum had risen significantly to Rs 23.83 crore. Over 40% of the company's total assets were represented by this amount.
The audit further alleges that a substantial portion of these funds was transferred to the company’s directors and their related parties. An examination of bank statements also revealed that crores of rupees were transferred to other entities, including Bhagwati Vintrade Private Limited.
The forensic audit reportedly found that several of these financial transactions were not fully disclosed in the company’s audited balance sheets. The CBI is now investigating the alleged diversion of loan funds, financial irregularities and the possible involvement of bank officials and other individuals in the case.
