Rotomac owner, son sent to one-day transit remand

A Delhi court on Friday allowed the plea of the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) plea to take Rotomac owner Vikram Kothari and his son Rahul to Lucknow on one-day transit remand. 

Vikram Kothari and his son, who were arrested yesterday in connection with the Rs 3,695-crore loan default case, were produced by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) before the Delhi court today.

The investigating agency sought their transit remand to take them to Lucknow.

Vikram and Rahul were produced before Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Samar Vishal. 

Defence advocate Pramod Kumar Dubey raised objections to the jurisdiction of the court, saying the accused should be produced before a sessions court and not before a magisterial court.

According to the CBI FIR (First Information Report), a consortium of seven banks had extended loans worth Rs 2,919 crore to Rotomac Global Pvt Limited from 2008.

The amount swelled to Rs 3,695 crore, including the accrued interest, because of repeated defaults on payment, the agency said.

The CBI had filed the case against Vikram, his wife Sadhana and Rahul, and unidentified bank officials.

The CBI initiated the action on the complaint of Bank of Baroda, a member of the consortium led by Bank of India, which had approached the agency fearing that Kothari may flee the country like Nirav Modi and his uncle Mehul Choksi.

The CBI said that the principal exposure of the banks regarding the loan is Bank of India -- Rs 754.77 crore, Bank of Baroda -- Rs 456.63 crore, Overseas Bank of India  -- Rs 771.07 crore, Union Bank of India -- Rs 458.95 crore,
Allahabad Bank -- Rs 330.68 crore, Bank of Maharashtra -- 49.82 crore and Oriental Bank of Commerce -- Rs 97.47 crore.