[dropcap color=”#008040″ boxed=”yes” boxed_radius=”8px” class=”” id=””]P[/dropcap]rannoy Roy’s utterances in the protest meet convened at Press Club in Delhi fall flat after Government officials explain the details of the investigation history on frauds and illegalities committed by NDTV. The details of the case history show that Income Tax Department (ITD) had started a probe against NDTV from 2011, when Pranab Mukherjee was the Finance Minister and the actions of the IRD went into a deep freezer when P Chidambaram landed back in Finance Ministry in June 2012.
…the 14 shell companies (except one at Mauritius) were intentionally dissolved after laundering the funds so that it becomes difficult for the Tax and Enforcement authorities in India to lay hands on them.
Pranab Mukherjee ordered a probe after the findings of Income Tax officers including the whistle-blower IT Commissioner SK Srivastava in 2011. The frauds of NDTV heated up after the expose on ICICI Bank frauds in Sunday Guardian in December 2010.
“The search by Central Bureau of Investigation at the premises of Prannoy Roy, Radhika Roy and Office of M/s RRPR Holdings Pvt. Ltd. on 05.06.2017 is an off-shoot of continuing investigation by the Income Tax Department and Enforcement Directorate since the year 2011 onwards. Income Tax Department is looking into undisclosed income of nearly Rs. 1600 crores by Dr. Prannoy Roy, Mrs. Radhika Roy and companies controlled/associated with NDTV Group. Enquiries in this connection were initiated by the Department during UPA regime since year 2011,” said an information note provided by senior officials.
NDTV, which is controlled by Prannoy Roy and Radhika Roy had only two subsidiaries in India till the year 2006. However, from 2006 to 2012, NDTV floated 32 paper companies including 14 foreign shell companies in U.K., the Netherlands, Mauritius, Sweden and U.A.E. in order to launder unaccounted income of Rs. 1100 crores using these paper entities. These companies were having no real business, no employees and no business premises. Notably, the 14 shell companies (except one at Mauritius) were intentionally dissolved after laundering the funds so that it becomes difficult for the Tax and Enforcement authorities in India to lay hands on them. These paper companies have claimed to raise funds through unidentified entities situated in British Virgin Islands, Cayman Islands, U.K., U.S.A., Switzerland, Netherlands etc. during the financial years 2007-2009. These claims were found to be false during investigation by Income Tax Department.
Assessment of the concealed income of Rs. 642.5 crores relating to NDTV Group/related companies was done during UPA regime on 21.02.2014. Re-assessment proceedings for concealment of Income of Rs. 403.85 crores have been initiated against M/s RRPR Holdings Pvt. Ltd. (owned by Prannoy Roy and Radhika Roy) and are presently underway. Assessment proceedings of unexplained funds of Rs. 400 crores in which funds were received from unknown entities in British Virgin Islands and Cayman Islands is in progress. Concealed income of Rs. 94 crores – Rs. 47 crores each by Mrs. Radhika Roy and Dr. Prannoy Roy – arising from manipulation of sale and purchase prices of shares, has been assessed and confirmed in the First Appeal also.
CBI registered a case against Prannoy Roy, Radhika Roy, M/s RRPR Holdings Private Limited and others on 02.06.2017 on the complaint of a share holder of NDTV and ICICI Bank. The complaint alleges that the promoters of M/s NDTV – Prannoy Roy, Radhika Roy and promoters of M/s RRPR acting in criminal conspiracy with unknown officials of ICICI Bank got a loan of Rs. 375 crores in the name of a private holding company having paltry assets of Rs. 75 crores and thereby violated Sec. 19(2) of the Banking Regulation Act, 1949 and the Master Circular dated 28.8.1988 of Reserve Bank of India. In furtherance of the conspiracy, ICICI Bank took the entire share holding of the promoters of NDTV (nearly 61%) as collateral and then accepted pre-payment of the loan of Rs. 375 crores within 10 months (even though the loan period was 3 years) by reducing the interest rate from 19% per annum to 9% per annum.
As a consequence thereof, wrongful loss of Rs.48 crores was caused to ICICI Bank with a corresponding wrongful gain to the promoters of NDTV. The promoters of NDTV repaid the loan of ICICI Bank by taking another loan from M/s Vishwapradhan Commercial Pvt. Ltd. (VCPL). This information was concealed from SEBI which has initiated proceedings in this regard.
The Reserve Bank of India detected violation of several provisions of FEMA by the NDTV Group to the tune of Rs. 2030 crores. The Enforcement Directorate has issued Show Cause Notice for contravention of FEMA provisions and adjudication proceedings are in progress.
The above details of information of all cases show that Prannoy Roy, instead of explaining his actions is trying to hide under the cover of journalism is screaming Freedom of Speech is at peril.
Note:
1. The conversion rate used in this article is 1 USD = 45.98 Rupees.
2. Text in Blue points to additional data on the topic.
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Can public rest well with assurance of honesty? Ever? The scams keep Unearthed every day? The will work on humaterian ground,letting them FREE
Undisciplined must be displined. Time and disposals should be left to law enforcing authorities. Interference of Govt. is to be zero but to be kept for monitoring speedily.
Very sad. In the present senerio of 4000 laws , any honest can be easily implicated even if he is innocent and wil take HERCULION efforts to prove innonce. Following simple suggestions.
As MODI JEE promised we must reduce these 4000 to 400 , in time bound programme. Even President showed his anguish on these 150 year old law.
1. ABOLISH INCOME TAX REPLACE BY SIMPLE “NATION BUILDING FUND MAXIMUM 9 % ON GROSS INCOME.
2. DISMANTLE CBI.
3. BAN RAIDS : EXCEPT FOR NON FINANCIAL HENIOUS CRIMES
4. IN COURTS BELOW GANDHI PHOTO ” FAIR -FIRM – FAST ” MUST BE WRITTEN IN GOLDEN LETTERS.
5. ALTERNATE DISPUTE REDRESSAL METHODS MUST BE ADOPTED WITH BLESSING OF SUPEREME COURT.
READY TO DISCUSS WIT ANY BODY ON ABOVE POINTS.
“In the present senerio of 4000 laws , any honest can be easily implicated even if he is innocent and wil take HERCULION efforts to prove innonce.”
Honest should not play ball with the dishonest; if they do, they are also answerable. The laws are stacked in favour of wrong-doers, if anything.
“As MODI JEE promised we must reduce these 4000 to 400 , in time bound programme. Even President showed his anguish on these 150 year old law.”
The Govt is doing it already.
“1. ABOLISH INCOME TAX REPLACE BY SIMPLE “NATION BUILDING FUND MAXIMUM 9 % ON GROSS INCOME.”
Why 9%, why not 1%? We should understand that tax rates are determined such that the Govt can balance its budget. Even Chanakya had advocateds 1/6th of income as budget. In the advanced technology era, competing with other world powers requires lots of money for the Govt.
2. DISMANTLE CBI.
3. BAN RAIDS : EXCEPT FOR NON FINANCIAL HENIOUS CRIMES
Investigative agencies should be unshackled but made fair and reasonable, not dismantled. How this can be done is a Trillion $ question! If CBI is dismantled, and raids are banned, lawlessness will be rampant.
5. ALTERNATE DISPUTE REDRESSAL METHODS MUST BE ADOPTED WITH BLESSING OF SUPEREME COURT.
Fair point. Needs to be done soonest.
Why government was sleeping since 2014 june ? Why they understand to raid only in june 2017 ? Why P guru not filed criminal complaint against NDTV & Promoter and ICICI Bank ? Why 21 times government lawyer asking for adjournment in the court ? Pl need to answer , can not say that it was delayed , then where is the governance which you & government is advocating ? No one is above the law , if they are guilty punished them and at the same time also prosecute CBI & ministry under which CBI functioning for their intentional delayed in starting the probe. Can you please answer this ? CBI head , Hom minister, PM , or PMO office , who is accountable for this mess ? I would like to see how your expert respond to this , please !
I reproduce below, what I have already said in PGururs elsewhere, earlier:
CBI was described as a caged parrot by the SC during the UPA regime. After NDA came to power, if anything, Modi Government has been accused of not going after the corrupt ministers and bureaucrats of the previous regime.
Incidentally, Modi had said in an interview that after NDA came to power, he had left law to take its own course on matters against his predecessors, but he had never opened a file against anyone, nor initiated any action. Since Modi had retained many of the key bureaucrats and officers in investigation agencies, grapevine was that wrong-doers of the previous era were being allowed to go scot-free.
Recently, in the natural course of events, changes happened in the CBI top brass, and the new officers are acting against some of the bigwigs, something his predecessors had failed to do. There is no evidence to suggest that any pressure was brought on CBI to act against anybody. All this explains the 7 year delay for the FIR against Prannoy Roy. Should the Government interfere and stop investigations on all past wrong-doings since the previous CBI officials were silent all along?
If the enquiry and action against ND TV was set in motion during UPA time why people like Vengaya Naidu and others are very eager to go to the press to clarify that NDA has nothing to do with it. Can they not keep
quiet. The very fact that they are not keeping quiet means Govt is involved in setting CBI against ND TV.
Why only ND TV why not ICICI who accepted a loss.
Good questions, and CBI has to answer these questions to the CBI Court.
This should be dealt by special investigation under supreme court supervision otherwise it will go on for 20 years
Its a clear case of money laundering what buseness did pranoy roy had had by forming on paper companies and closing down the same abruptly so that no one could track the transactions that took place also icici bank is the culprit all the rules fema etc flouted they deserve the severe punishments also there is talk of their relations with terrorist outfits
Why should NDTV & ICICI Bank be allowed to cry foul just because they are in the radder for CHEATING & SYPHONING indian tax payers money by illegal & fraudulent means. The entire facts & storey should be told by NDTV & OTHER MEDIAS & GOVT to the PUBLIC IN THE NAME OF FREE SPEECH which they- NDTV boasts of.
The question being raised is not on the merits of the case.. It is a case where the lawyers representing the prosecution have taken adjournments continuously since it was last heard. The crux of the matter is the timing of the raids is interpreted as an attack on press freedom since i was raised only after the NDTV, program of June 1st. When a Bjp spokesmen made a baseless charge against the channel just because he was not allowing the program to proceed. No one has declared that theRoy’s are innocent but they will be deemed to be innocent till proved in the Court.
So what’s new every accused is deemeed innocent unless proven guilty. By this logic advaniji is innoscent dhould he still be allowed to become the president? Taking disadvntage of the freedom of the pressed roys have misapproprisred to the tune odf1600 crores,if he is innoscent what business p chidambarsm had had stopping the probe pranavda had ordered?
CBI is NOT pronouncing Prannoy Roy guilty; but when investigations and raids are done, why is the Press Council protesting, asking CBI action to be withdrawn?
You said: “No one has declared that the Roy’s are innocent but they will be deemed to be innocent till proved in the Court.”
Let’s have glimpses of what the speakers at the Press Council Meet said (http://www.ndtv.com/india-news/live-updates-press-club-of-india-meets-on-raids-on-ndtv-1710171) :
• HK Dua: “Unless we are united, we can meet the same fate”
• Fali Nariman: “Whenever there is a majoritarian government, there is this tendency. We must resist it.”
• Aroon Purie: “Such a move also undermines basic tenets of free speech.”
• Kuldip Nayar: “Today, when we are facing more or less the same (emergency-like) situation – not that extent – all of us have to ensure we don’t allow any body to muzzle free speech.”
• Raj Chengappa: “We are deeply concerned of what has happened. Any attack or raid is a serious threat particularly if residences and offices are being raided in such a manner.”
• Arun Shourie: “They have made NDTV an example of that. This will intensify in the coming months because of the nature of the regime – its genes are totalitarian.”
• If the media is not united today, this can happen to anybody.
• What has happened is not new. Has happened a lot during the Congress days, Atalji’s days.
• Om Thanvi: “• If the media is not united today, this can happen to anybody. The time to fight has come. And journalists should fight by themselves.”
• It is one of those times when we have to forget our organisational and institutional affiliations. This is an issue that concerns the mother of all our institutions – the free press. This is an assault on the free press.
• Shekar Gupta: “This is an assault on the free press. Per capita there are far better people in journalism than other professions.”
What does all this indicate? The owners and reporters of the Press are a law unto themselves! Why can’t politicians like Lallu, Mayawati, Mulayam, Mamta, A. Raja (DMK) and Sasikala get together and say, “We’ve given our life and blood to politics. All cases against us are motivated and they should all be withdrawn”?
We should separate court cases from our fight against Governments, politically or otherwise. Else, these lumanaries are only discrediting themselves. They have gone down several notches in my esteem.
Action must be taken on ICICI bank as well
Why did Pranab Mukerjee allow Rashtrapati bhavan to be used by Prannay Roy for his NDTV Programme. All are birds of the same feather.
I am not able to understand NDTV gets a loan of ₹375crs from ICICI Bank @19% pa n got pledged what so ever securities to bank’s satisfaction and the loan was adjusted in 10 months charging into @9% a loss of ₹45crs to bank I think there is no any fault of NDTV but of ICICI Bank and action against the bank should be taken by RBI/Government.
Will PGurus explain in details to satisfy me.
Thanks
NDTV either bribed ICICI bank officials or used their political clout in getting the loan against the banking rules and repaying the amount at reduced rate. They can not go scot-free. Bank loss to be recovered from NDTV and the bank officials and the politicians involved and the NDTV to be punished.