IL&FS scam: IFIN fraudulently lent to group firms to avoid declaring NPAs
The Serious Fraud Investigation Office (SFIO), in its probe into IL&FS Financial Services (IFIN), has found that the company fraudulently sanctioned loans to IL&FS group entities to avoid declaring stressed assets, sources told FE.
In several instances, IFIN received the same loan amount within a few days as debt repayments from the same or other group entities, the sources said.
The SFIO found instances of such circuitous transactions in case of group companies, including IL&FS Transport Networks (ITNL), IL&FS Energy Development (IEDCL), IL&FS Maritime Infrastructure and IL&FS Employee Welfare Trust.
In one such instance, the SFIO found that IFIN disbursed Rs 156 crore to Jharkhand Road Projects Implementation Company, a group company under the ITNL vertical, on September 26, 2015. The amount was repaid by Jharkhand Road Projects to IFIN in two tranches of Rs 106 crore and Rs 50 crore on the same day. In another case, Rs 50 crore was disbursed to Jharkhand Road projects on October 29, 2015, then the same amount was received as outstanding debt payment from IL&FS Rail, another ITNL subsidiary.
