The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) registered a case against Visa Power Ltd, a firm based out of Kolkata for allegedly defrauding a consortium of 14 banks by siphoning and diverting funds to the tune of Rs 1,964 crores.
The FIR mentioned that Visa Power Ltd, a wholly owned subsidiary of Visa Energy Ventures Ltd, which is a wholly owned subsidiary of Visa Infrastructure and developing a domestic coal-based thermal power project at Chhattisgarh's Raigarh with a generation capacity of 1,200 MW.
The FIR named the firm's chairman Vishambaran Saran, chairman and managing director Vikas Agarwal and joint managing director Subrato Trivedi.
Visa Power's representatives had approached Punjab National Bank's Station Square branch in Bhubaneswar for a financial facility and presented financials and projections of the company to the bank seeking financial assistance making the bank believe that the said loan limit of the business of the company would grow.
The project was chalked out to be executed in two phases of 5,600 MW each. Phase I has been financial through a consortium of 14 lenders with PNB lead baking TL limit of Rs 1,964 crores of which PNB had sanctioned Rs 394 crores.
The audited financial statements of Visa Power Ltd (VPL) showed a sum of Rs 60.08 crores and Rs 15.60 crores have been paid by VPL to Visa Reality Ltd (VR) as a capital advance in the financial year 2011-12 and 2012-13, respectively.
Such capital advance has been utilized by VRL for buying equity and preference shares in the related parties of VRL and VPL ( Visa Minmetal Ltd.) The nature of the transaction indicates that the accused company intending to misappropriate the bank money has diverted the fund, the FIR reads.
In view of facts and circumstances, it is clear that the accused persons have jointly hatched a conspiracy against Public Sector Banks with the intent to cheat banks by diverting/siphoning money committed various offences under the provision of IPC, it further reads.
