The Central Bureau of Investigation on Saturday conducted raids at the premises of Punjab Aam Aadmi Party MLA Jaswant Singh Gajjan Majra in an alleged bank fraud case of over Rs 40 crore, PTI reported.
CBI officials searched three places in Malerkotla town of Sangrur district, PTI reported. The location is the ancestral home of the Amargarh MLA.
“Cash worth approximately Rs 16.57 lakh, around 88 foreign currency notes, some property documents, several bank accounts and other incriminating documents were recovered during the searches,” said the CBI spokesperson RC Joshi said, according to NDTV.
The case related to taking loans by hiding information, was registered on the basis of a complaint filed by a Ludhiana branch of the Bank of India against Malerkotla-based private firm Tara Corporation Limited, the central agency said.
Majra was one of the directors and guarantors of the firm when it took four loans from the bank between 2011 and 2014, according to the complaint. The directors allegedly “concealed hypothecated stock and diverted book debts” while taking the loans, the CBI said.
The bank had declared the loan as a non-performing asset in 2018 after Tara Corporation could not repay the amount. However, as the directors had allegedly hidden information about their assets, the bank could not recover the amount through security deposits. This resulted in a loss of Rs 40.92 crore for the bank, according to the CBI.
The loan amount was not used for the purposes for which it was taken, the central agency also alleged.
Majra’s brothers Balwant Singh and Kulwant Singh and his nephew Tejinder Singh, who were also directors and guarantors of the firm, have also been booked.
Limited-time offer: Big stories, small price. Keep independent media alive. Become a Scroll member today!
Our journalism is for everyone. But you can get special privileges by buying an annual Scroll Membership. Sign up today!