EMI Transmission director remanded to CBI custody in ₹739 crore bank fraud case

Sanjiv Rasiklal Sheth, director of EMI Transmission Ltd, was remanded to CBI custody for alleged bank fraud of ₹739.20 crore involving forged documents.

MUMBAI: A special court recently remanded Sanjiv Rasiklal Sheth, director of EMI Transmission Ltd, to the custody of the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) up to October 8 in connection with an alleged bank fraud of ₹739.20 crore.

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According to the CBI, Sheth, who was the company’s whole-time director since 1990, allegedly masterminded a scheme to defraud a consortium of banks from 2000 to 2017. He submitted forged balance sheets and manipulated stock statements to secure credit facilities far in excess of what the company was entitled to.

The central agency further alleged that about ₹225 crore of the bank loan funds were diverted to foreign entities in Dubai, with a part of the money used for personal and commercial purposes, including to purchase two shops worth ₹3.45 crore and loan repayments amounting to over ₹16 crore, as well as a car loan of ₹62 lakh.

The CBI claimed that, though they lodged an FIR on December 29, 2022, Sheth had been absconding. They said his custodial interrogation was essential to trace the money trail and expose the wider conspiracy.

The court, however, sided with the CBI, holding that custodial interrogation was indispensable, given the scale of the alleged fraud and the complexity of the financial transactions involved.

Special Judge AV Gujarathi, after hearing both sides, remanded Sheth to CBI custody on October 1. The judge noted that the agency had not yet issued a proclamation or moved to attach Sheth’s properties, but the seriousness of the allegations called for custodial questioning.

“Considering the nature and gravity of the offence and complexity of the transactions, I have no hesitation to hold that custodial interrogation of the accused is necessary to facilitate further investigation,” the special court said while remanding him to CBI custody.

The court accepted the prosecution’s argument that Sheth’s detention was necessary “to unearth the larger conspiracy, to ascertain where and how the forged documents were prepared, and to trace the diverted funds.”