LICHFL loan row deepens as ED books Subhash Chandra
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Monday registered a money laundering case against media baron and former Rajya Sabha MP Subhash Chandra under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA). The CBI filed the FIR based on a complaint by Life Insurance Corporation Housing Finance Ltd (LICHFL). Chandra was booked by the CBI after a controversial NCLT order, which allowed him to get out with a small amount.
Chandra is charged with inflating his net worth through false certificates to obtain loans of Rs.980 crore from LICHFL, which subsequently defaulted, resulting in a loss of Rs.1,322 crore to the lender. Companies linked to Chandra took the loans using his personal guarantee, which was inflated.
The CBI case (based on LICHFL’s August complaint) is about two facilities. The first was a Rs.500 cr home entity loan for takeover, top-up, and business expansion to Vasant Sagar Properties Private Limited, with Pan India Infra Projects Private Limited as co-borrower. It was secured by a continuing guarantee from Chandra dated 28th March 2018.
The second was a `480 cr rental discounting facility under a rental securitisation scheme to Digital Subscriber Management and Consultancy Services Private Limited with Spirit Infra Power and Multi Ventures Private Limited as co-borrower, again with a continuing guarantee from Chandra.
LICHFL said it approved the loans in part based on two net worth certificates submitted by Chandra. The first, from DJM and Co dated 28 March 2018, put his net worth at approximately Rs.59,000 crore. The second, from MPJ and Co dated 6 July 2018, put it at Rs.40,562 crore. Both loans subsequently defaulted.
During the proceedings under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC), 2016, Chandra denied the net worth mentioned in the certificates. He said his net worth in 2024 was Rs.31.79 crore and claimed it did not exceed Rs.40,000 crore in 2017-18. The CBI FIR claims he worked with the borrower companies, their officers, and directors to create false documents showing a higher net worth, aiming to persuade LICHFL to lend money that was then misused.
LICHFL was one of the lenders who went to the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) opposing the recent NCLT repayment plan. That plan would have allowed creditors to recover only around Rs.6.5 crore from Chandra’s personal estate against total claims of around Rs.22,006 crore.
A ZEE spokesperson has confirmed that the ED case has been filed against Chandra in his personal capacity and has nothing to do with the company or its operations. “The matters are entirely with respect to Dr Subhash Chandra and the promoter entities and in no way have any bearing on ‘Z’ or its operations,” said the ED spokesperson.
The ED case follows the CBI’s registration of an FIR on LICHFL’s complaint. The money laundering probe began after the CBI recorded the scheduled offence. Chandra and the promoter entities named in the FIR have not yet commented. The case is another development in the ongoing insolvency probe into entities linked to a media entrepreneur, said the ED.
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