Court summons PNB CEO & MD, 10 others for duping RBI in Nirav Modi case
MUMBAI: A Delhi court has issued summons against 11 officials of the Punjab National Bank, including current CEO and MD Sunil Mehta and former MD & CEO Usha Ananthasubramanium, for allegedly wilfully furnishing false statements and misleading the RBI. The order comes in the wake of a rare move by the RBI to initiate criminal proceedings against bank employees in the Rs 11,000 crores PNB fraud case at the bank’s Brady House branch in Mumbai.
RBI had earlier this year, through an authorised representative, filed a private complaint against PNB and 11 officials for offences punishable under Banking Regulation Act.
The RBI complaint said that it had “discovered the falsity of the information provided by proposed accused persons while scrutinising the Brady House Branch, Mumbai of PNB.” The RBI alleged that it had found that the information furnished by PNB “in the last few years are completely false…In utter disregard to statutory obligations under section 46 of the Banking Regulation Act.”
Dharmender Singh, metropolitan magistrate, New Delhi, Patiala House Court, in his order dated March 11 observed that the RBI case, argued by its special counsel Mahesh Jethmalani, is that as a statutory corporation it is vested with power to inspect any bank and its books and accounts. The PNB managing director and CEO Usha A had worked in that capacity from August 14, 2015 to May 4, 2017.
The court order recorded the RBI counsel’s submissions that during information technology inspections of PNB it was “observed that core banking system was not integrated with many critical applications and there was no online integration of SWIFT with CBS”.
The RBI complaint stated that during February 8, 2016 and February 12, 2016, it had conducted an inspection of the PNB’s systems and Information Technology aspects. “After conducting detailed inspection…complainant (RBI) prepared a comprehensive report” which was forwarded to the bank as an email in June 2016, said the court order. The mail was addressed to three bank employees with a fourth called on to submit a compliance report within 30 days. The RBI complaint alleged that a “false compliance report” prepared by six bank officials, was submitted in July 2016.
The RBI alleged that the PNB officials “wilfully made false statements despite being aware of the risks and repercussions of failing to integrate SWIFT with CBS and introducing STP between SWIFT messaging and CBS.” The court order recorded that the RBI had in August 2016, issued a confidential circular to all scheduled commercial banks, including PNB, “advising them to strengthen the controls around operating environment for fund transfers through SWIFT or similar interfaces”. The false information was given by them in “connivance”, alleged the RBI in its complaint.
The magistrate said, “In view of facts stated in the complaint and documents…case is made out for summoning of all proposed accused persons for offence under section 46 BR Act.” They are summoned on May 24.
Section 46 of BR Act provides for three years imprisonment and fine for “wilfully” making a false statement, knowing it to be false.
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