PMC bank scam: Ex-MD gave cash to HDIL without processing cheques

Jagdish Mookhey, one of the accused former directors of PMC bank, was produced in court on Wednesday. Pic/Ashish Raje

The forensic audit report of Punjab and Maharashtra Cooperative Bank (PMC Bank) has brought to the fore the rampant loan violations done by senior bank officials. As per the report, former MD Joy Thomas provided cash facilities to HDIL at PMC bank. The report states that the Wadhwans of Housing Development Infrastructure Ltd (HDIL) had taken Rs 13 crore cash from the bank out of which only Rs 3 crore were returned.

"The Rs 10 crore amount will now be included in the total amount of the fraud with interest," an EOW officer said on the condition of anonymity. "The forensic audit report shows cash transactions of Rs 13 crores towards Wadhwans by just taking cheques which were never processed. A total of 22 cheques issued by Wadhwans to PMC bank have been recovered," the officer said.

"'The cashier provided whatever amount was demanded by the Wadhwans on the instructions of Thomas. He would take the cheques but never processed them to recover the amount," he added. The report has also found suspicious transactions of around R12 to 15 crore just two weeks before the RBI put restrictions on cash withdrawal. According to EOW, these transactions were done from 12 accounts off which 2 are owned by two corporate companies, 2 by PMC employees while the rest 8 belong to family members of PMC directors.

"These are not big transactions but are suspicious in nature as the transactions were done just days before RBI's restrictions," the officer said. The three former directors arrested on Tuesday have been sent to EOW custody till 11th of December. The agency produced only two directors - Jagdish Mookhey and Trupti Bane before the court as Mukti Bavisi is currently hospitalised.

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