ICICI bank case: Jail officials fail to take Dhoot’s sign on bail bond, court seeks explanation
A special CBI court issued a show cause notice to the superintendent of Arthur Road jail for failing to take the signature of businessman Venugopal Dhoot on his personal bond and cash bail when he was released on bail. Dhoot was arrested on December 26 in connection with a loan fraud case.
MUMBAI: A special CBI court last week issued a show cause notice to the superintendent of Arthur Road jail for failing to take the signature of businessman Venugopal Dhoot on the personal bond and cash bail submitted by him while he was released on bail.
Dhoot was granted bail on January 20 by the Bombay high court (HC) on executing a personal bond of ₹1 lakh with one or more sureties. The court had allowed him to be released on a cash bond of ₹1 lakh and granted him the time of two weeks to submit the sureties. Dhoot, accordingly, submitted his personal bond and the cash bond with the prison and was released from jail.
The special CBI court while issuing show cause notice to the prison department observed that “on March 31, 2023, the court received original PR Bond and Cash Bond of applicant / accused from Arthur Road Jail by hand delivery. However, the said PR Bond and Cash Bond do not appear to be signed by the applicant / accused and as such it is necessary to call for an explanation from the Jail Superintendent, Mumbai Central Prison.”
The notice was issued while hearing the plea filed by Dhoot, pleading to accept the surety in his absence as he was bedridden and admitted in a hospital at Aurangabad. Dhoot’s lawyer SS Ladda told the court that during the judicial custody, his medical condition was not good and his sugar level was also not under control, besides other health issues.
“Therefore, immediately after his release from prison, Dhoot was shifted to the hospital at Aurangabad through air ambulance and since then he is in hospital,” Ladda informed the court and also submitted Dhoot’s medical papers. Considering Dhoot’s plea the court treated it as an extraordinary circumstance and accepted the surety submitted by him.
Dhoot was arrested on December 26 in the case registered by CBI in connection with the loan fraud case. According to the CBI, between June 2009 and October 2011, ICICI Bank had sanctioned rupee term loans (RTLs) of ₹1,875 crore to six companies of Videocon Group. All these loans were sanctioned after Chanda Kochhar took over as the MD and CEO of the bank.
The agency further alleged that on April 26, 2012, the existing outstanding of the six RTL accounts were adjusted in RTL of ₹1,730 crore sanctioned to M/S VIL for refinancing domestic debt and eventually the M/s VIL account was declared NPA on June 30, 2017. The present outstanding in the account, according to the CBI, is ₹1,033 crore.