New Delhi: A Delhi court has taken cognisance of a charge sheet filed by Enforcement Directorate (ED) against Gujarat-based pharmaceutical firm, Sterling Biotech Ltd’s director Rajbhushan Ompr-akash Dixit in a bank loan fraud case of more than Rs 5,000 crore.
Additional Sessions Judge Satish Arora took cognisance of the final report filed by the ED special public prosector Nitesh Rana and summoned the accused for August 8, the next date of hearing.
The court noted that Mr Dixit was already out on bail in the money laundering case and directed him to appear on next date of hearing.
In the chargesheet, the ED has accused the company of taking loans of over Rs 5,000 crore from a consortium led by the Andhra Bank, which had turned the loans into non-performing assets (NPAs).
The chargesheet, filed through advocate A.R. Aditya claimed that the accused committed offence punishable under Sections 3 and 4 of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).
The agency had in February arrested a former director of Andhra Bank, Anup Prakash Garg, and Delhi-based businessman Gagan Dhawan last November in connection with the case.
They were named as accused in the cases by the the agency and the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).
The ED registered a money laundering case in this instance after taking cognisance of an earlier CBI FIR.
The investigating agency had booked Sterling Biotech, its directors Chetan Jayantilal Sandesara, Dipti Chetan Sandesara, Dixit, Nitin Jayantilal Sandesara and Vilas Joshi, chartered accountant Hemant Hathi, Garg and some unidentified persons in connection with the alleged bank fraud case.
The first information report (FIR) claimed that the total pending dues of the group companies were Rs 5,383 crore as on December 31, 2016.
