<div><div><strong>Suchetana Ray</strong><br><br>The mess is getting bigger for Bank of Baroda with two agencies -- CBI and Enforcement Directorate (ED) -- swooping down on the Bank on Tuesday (13 October): .While ED has arrested 4 people in connection with the illegal remittance of foreign exchange from the Ashok Vihar branch of Bank of Baroda, CBI arrested 2 people.</div><div> </div><div>CBI’s probe so far shows that Rs 6,172 crore was laundered to Hong Kong using newly opened 59 current accounts of alleged shell companies masquerading as export-import entities. And based on this investigation, ED today arrested Kamal Kalra, Chandan Bhatia, Gurcharan Singh Dhawan and Sanjay Aggarwal. Top sources in the Directorate allege that Kalra allegedly works for HDFC Bank and all these individuals have been arrested for helping and abetting laundering of money.</div><div> </div><div>While CBI today arrested AGM and branch head of BoB in Ashok Vihar, SK Garg and foreign exchange division head, Jainis Dubey. CBI sleuths point out that this small branch in New Delhi has witnessed a surge in forex transactions, which continued for a year. The bank report claimed that forex business increased to Rs 21,528 crore in the 2014-15 fiscal as against Rs 44.98 crore in the year 2013-14. Sources in the investigating agency say that despite the huge increase in foreign exchange being remitted to alleged suppliers based out of Hong Kong, the Bank failed to obtain any report on these foreign suppliers.</div><div> </div><div>CBI raided the Ashok Vihar branch of Bank of Baroda in New Delhi last Saturday after the investigating agency decided to launch a probe into certain foreign remittances by the Bank. Sources allege that Rs 6172 crore has been illegally remitted to Hong Kong from Bank of Baroda. </div><div> </div><div>“This is a case of black money being siphoned out”, said a source in CBI on conditions of anonymity. Several private companies are also being probed in this connection.</div><div> </div><div>The Bank of Baroda stock has been reeling in trade for two consecutive days following these probes by agencies.</div><div> </div></div><div> </div><div> </div>
_20240918122912_original_image_25.webp)