‘The Story So Far...’ | CBI Summons Sujana Chowdary

The CBI has issued summons to former Union Minister and Telugu Desam Party leader Y S Chowdary for questioning into the case of electrical equipment manufacturer Best and Crompton Engineering Projects Ltd allegedly cheating the Andhra Bank of Rs 71 crore in 2017.

The agency has asked him to appear before the investigators at its Bengaluru office on Friday.

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on February 3, 2017 had registered a case against the Chennai-based company, its five directors, including Managing Director, and a chief financial officer under charges of criminal conspiracy, cheating and forgery.

Maintaining his defence, chowdary said in a statement that he was holding only non-executive positions in three listed entities of Sujana group with no powers of management of the companies till October 2014. Chowdary said that he has no connections knowledge or acquaintance with the Company referred by them or its affairs at any point of time.

Just earlier this month, the Enforcement Directorate said that it had attached immovable and movable properties of Viceroy Hotels Ltd., Hyderabad worth Rs 315 crore under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act in a bank fraud case, in which Chowdary's name was also allegedly involved.

The ED said an investigation under PMLA was initiated on the basis of an FIR registered by CBI, Bangalore against Best & Crompton Engineering Pvt Ltd and their officials for the criminal conspiracy between 2010-2013 to defraud Central Bank of India, Andhra Bank and Corporation Bank.

The total loss caused to the consortium of banks due to the fraud was to the tune of Rs 364 crore.

Chowdary, Rajya Sabha MP of the Telugu Desam Party, is considered a close aide of Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister and party president N Chandrababu Naidu and has been alleged by the agency to be the promoter of Sujana group of companies.

Mr Chowdary was a Minister of State (MoS) in the Union cabinet headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi before N Chandrababu Naidu quit the NDA early last year over the Centre's refusal to grant special status to Andhra Pradesh.

The ED had carried out raids in the premises of these firms in multiple locations including Hyderabad and Delhi in the past.

( Arpita Ghosh: Lead Writer and Anchor | Laxmikanth Patwari: Video Editor)