3 held in Andaman bank loan ''irregularities''

Port Blair, Jun 26 (PTI) Three persons were arrested in connection with alleged irregularities in sanctioning loans by a cooperative bank in Andaman and Nicobar Islands, police said on Thursday.

The arrests were made on Wednesday night as these persons had made suspicious bank transactions, an officer said.

“We have arrested three persons for having suspicious bank transactions from their accounts in the last few years. During interrogation, they revealed the involvement of senior Andaman and Nicobar State Cooperative Bank Ltd (ANSCBL) officials in the scam. We have seized some documents. The probe is underway," he said.

On May 15, an FIR was lodged against the vice chairman of the ANSCBL and former Congress MP Kuldeep Rai Sharma in connection with alleged irregularities in sanctioning huge amounts of loans to various people.

“During the investigation, we have found a few interesting money trails to the bank accounts of a driver (employee of one of the accused in the bank loan scam), a tea stall owner at Chouldari in Port Blair and a mechanic. We are exploring all angles.” Apart from Sharma, others named in the FIR include the cooperative bank's former chairman, board members and directors/officials of the bank and several beneficiaries.

There are allegations that the managing committee of the ANSCBL overlooked the recommendations of the loan screening committee and ignored the CIBIL report and mandatory documents while sanctioning loans, a police source said.

The police had received a complaint from the deputy registrar of the Cooperative Societies (HQ), which alleged gross irregularities in sanctioning loans to various people by the lender. PTI SN SN BDC