
Janani Bank scam: Prime accused arrested in Kovelakuntla
CI Hanumantha Naik confirmed that Venkataramana, a native of Somavandlapalle in YSR Kadapa district, was taken into custody and remanded to judicial custody, during a press conference here on Monday.
He explained that four years ago, Venkataramana, along with Guvvala Padmavati and others, established Janani Society near Om Shanti Bhavan in Kovelakuntla. The society lured depositors from Kovelakuntla, Chagalamarri, Nandyal, and Banaganapalle with promises of high interest rates and easy loan access, surpassing private bank offerings. Investigations revealed that the society collected around Rs 1.5 crore in fixed and savings deposits, which Venkataramana diverted to his personal account. When depositors sought returns upon maturity, they found the society's premises closed and the management absconding.
Police previously arrested co-accused Guvvala Padmavati, Akula Bharadwaj, and society chairperson Sujatha. Venkataramana's arrest marks a significant breakthrough in the ongoing investigation into the scam that exploited depositors' trust.
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The Print
8 minutes ago
- The Print
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Indian Express
8 minutes ago
- Indian Express
Why CBI closed case against former AAP Delhi Minister Satyendar Jain: No criminal activity or loss to govt
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The Print
23 minutes ago
- The Print
Anil Ambani's firms were under scanner of banks & SEBI before ED tightened noose around him
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According to SEBI, the firm consistently maintained its relationship with Exel Logistics on par with several other entities providing Engineering, Procurement, and Construction (EPC) services. While the firm has maintained its financial transactions amounting to thousands of crores over the decade, it never disclosed that CLE Private Limited was a related party in its financial statements. However, an investigation by SEBI found that a firm, Reliance HR Services, held the largest stake of 41.05 percent stake in the company. The SEBI investigation also found that Yes Bank considered CLE a 100 percent subsidiary of the Anil Ambani-controlled group while extending credit between 2013 and 2018. The bank also stipulated that the shareholding structure should not change until the loan was repaid. SEBI further found that as many as six former CLE directors held equivalent positions in one or more group companies of the Reliance Group. Among them was Madhukar Moolwaney, Reliance Infra's Chief Financial Officer, was CLE's director for a decade between 2003 and 2013. The market watchdog noted Moolwaney's statement that he was made CLE's director for a decade by the 'virtue of his employment with Reliance Infra' and that the firm was indirectly controlled by Anil Ambani and his selected group of 15-20 persons. SEBI concluded that CLE made investments amounting to Rs 11,217 crore into several allegedly controlled by Anil Ambani, in which he and his family members were direct beneficiaries. However, advances , investment in preference shares and debentures by R Infra in CLE which was eventually written written off by R Infra formed the bulk source of such funds, the SEBI observed in its findings. 'CLE failed to respond to SEBI's repeated summons in this regard and failed to provide any rationale or explanation on these investments or source of funds. Similarly, R Infra failed to provide any explanation on their accounting adjustments on the outstanding of CLE, through which it wrote down over Rs. 12,035 Crore in CLE without any adequate disclosures, nor they have followed the rigors of statutory requirement with respect to related party transactions. No explanation has been offered by Mr. Anil Ambani also, whose presence is found at both the ends of the spectrum of transactions,' the SEBI observed in its investigation findings. 'Accordingly, it is concluded that the aforementioned entities were beneficiaries of the illegal diversion of funds from R Infra, the listed company, for the ultimate benefit of its promoter through a scheme of fund movements and accounting adjustments,' the watchdog documented in the finding shared with the ED. Also Read: ED issues Lookout Circular against Anil Ambani in loan fraud case, hours after summons for questioning SBI's inevitable complaint SBI sent a letter to Reliance Communications on 23 June, informing the firm that it had flagged its loan account as a potential fraud account on 13 June. This marked the second time in five years that the account had been classified as fraudulent. In November 2020, SBI had already marked the account as fraudulent and informed the Reserve Bank of India in line with its guidelines. However, in the wake of orders from the Delhi High Court and the Supreme Court regarding the classification of firms and promoters accused of committing fraud, the bank reinitiated the process. In this, the SBI management issued a Show Cause Notice to Reliance Communications and Anil Ambani along with a forensic report of the firm to the directors to explain their case. Anil Ambani presented his case before the bank's Fraud Identification Committee (FIC). According to the bank's FIC, Reliance Infratel Limited (RITL) and Reliance Telecom Limited (RTL) – erstwhile subsidiaries of Reliance Communications – had received Rs 31,580 crore from banks, of which Rs 13,667 crore was used for repayment of loans. In comparison, Rs 12,692 crore was allegedly paid to connected companies. The bank pinpointed transactions such as a Rs 250 crore loan from Dena Bank in February 2017 to Reliance Communications to deal with 'short-term cash flow mismatch and payment of dues, sundry creditors'. The bank alleged that Reliance Communications passed on the loan amount to its subsidiary, Reliance Communication Infrastructure Limited (RCIL), as an ICD, while claiming that the funds were used to pay dues to BNP Paribas Bank. The bank further found that NBFC India Infrastructure Finance Company Ltd (IIFCL) sanctioned Rs 248 crore to Reliance Communications for capital expenditure, which was passed on to its subsidiaries, RITL and RIEL, in the amounts of Rs 63 crore and Rs 77 crore, respectively. The bank further alleged that there were inter-company loan transfers in which Reliance Communications transferred Rs 783.77 crore to RTL and Rs 1,435 crore to RITL from loans obtained from the banks. The Reliance Group argued before the bank that Reliance Communications always functioned as a borrowing group that included all these subsidiaries. Hence, inter-company transfer allegations were not applicable against them. The bank committee, on the other hand, asserted that these firms had not made the transfers directly but routed them through associates and other subsidiaries, raising suspicions that those transactions were sham and allegedly carried out through the manipulation of the books of accounts, ultimately to misappropriate funds. Union Minister of State for Finance Pankaj Chaudhary informed the Lok Sabha on 22 July that SBI had an exposure of around Rs 3,000 crore in Reliance Communications. This included the principal outstanding amount of Rs. 2,227.64 crore, along with accrued interest and expenses as of 26 August, 2016, and a bank guarantee of Rs 786.52 crore. 'On 24.06.2025, the bank has reported classification of fraud to RBI, and is also in the process of lodging a complaint with CBI,' he further informed the Lower House just a day before the ED started conducting raids on premises linked to his companies that lasted for four days. (Edited by Sugita Katyal) Also Read: 'Corruption follows those in power like shadow'—HC rejects IAS officer's anticipatory bail in bribery case