CBI Arrests 2 Directors Of RP Infosystem For ₹515-cr Fraud On Banks

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), on Thursday, arrested two directors of Kolkata-based RP Infosystem — Shibaji Panja and Kaustav Ray — for an alleged ₹515-crore bank fraud.

The two have been arrested on charges relating to forgery, criminal conspiracy and cheating. Canara Bank had recently filed a fresh complaint against Kolkata-based RP Infosystem and its directors following which the CBI initiated a probe into the matter. A CBI spokesperson confirmed the arrest.

In January 2015, IDBI Bank, which had an exposure of around ₹156 crore to RP Infosystem, the makers of Chirag computers, lodged a complaint of fraud committed on their bank ‘alone’ to the CBI.

The said company had a total exposure of around ₹600 crore to a consortium of lenders, including Canara Bank, State Bank of India (SBI), State Bank of Patiala (SBP), State Bank of Bikaner and Jaipur (SBBJ), Punjab National Bank (PNB), Union Bank of India, Allahabad Bank, Federal Bank, Oriental Bank of Commerce (OBC) and Central Bank of India.

According to the FIR filed with the CBI, it is also alleged that Letters of Credit opened by different member banks of the consortium on the application of RP Infosystem started devolving from 2012 onwards due to non-maintenance of funds.

The company (RP Infosystem) is also said to have “dishonestly and fraudulently” not routed the sale proceeds to the loan account and siphoned-off the entire amount, it further alleged. The company is also alleged to have inflated its receivables and some of the debtors (as claimed by the company) like GAIL India, Vincent Electronics and CEAT had informed they had no dealings with the company.

Incidentally, Panja — a media baron and a one-time close aide of West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee — had been arrested in 2015 for allegedly duping a Delhi-based businessman.