SBI followed due process while declaring RCom loan account as fraud: HC

A division bench of justices Revati Mohite Dere and Neela Gokhale did not entertain Ambani’s contention that the SBI’s order should be held as null and void.

MUMBAI: The State Bank of India (SBI) followed due process while classifying the loan account of the Anil Ambani-led Reliance Communications (RCom) as “fraud”, and the businessman could not escape liability as the promoter of the company, the Bombay high court said on Friday, while dismissing his petition questioning the bank’s order.

FILE PHOTO: Anil Ambani, chairman of the Reliance Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group, attends the company's annual general meeting in Mumbai, India, September 30, 2019. REUTERS/Prashant Waydande/File Photo (NA)

A division bench of justices Revati Mohite Dere and Neela Gokhale also did not entertain Ambani’s contention that the SBI’s order should be held as null and void because he was not given a personal hearing and the relevant documents were not furnished to him on time. The right available under the Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI) Master Directions, under which the SBI passed its order, “is one of representation, not necessarily of personal hearing,” the court noted in its judgement, a copy of which was made available on Tuesday.

The high court also noted that SBI had issued a show-cause notice to Ambani last year, but he failed to reply to it and continued to seek documents. This led to the bank finally passing the order to classify RCom’s loan accounts as fraudulent in June 2024, the court said. SBI had alleged misappropriation of funds through transactions violating loan terms.

Ambani then moved the high court, arguing that SBI had not followed the principles of natural justice, as it did not grant him a hearing and didn’t provide certain documents to him on time. However, the high court noted that SBI passed the order only when there was no response to its last communication. Further, Ambani never made any request for a personal hearing, it added.

The principles of natural justice cannot be applied in a straitjacket formula, the court said, adding that Ambani was given an adequate opportunity to submit his objections in writing. “Hence, the requirement of fairness and compliance with the principle of natural justice stood satisfied,” the court said.

Ambani had also claimed that he was not a full-time director of RCom; and hence, his account should not have been classified as fraud. However, the high court said that once a company’s account is declared fraudulent, the promoters/directors in control of the company are also liable for penal measures. It could be seen that Ambani exercised control over RCom, the court said.

The high court’s dismissal of Ambani’s plea came two months after the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) carried out searches at premises linked to RCom and the businessman in Mumbai as part of its probe into the alleged bank loan fraud case, which was registered based on SBI’s complaint.

The agency also registered the first information report (FIR) in the matter, citing a complaint sent by SBI deputy general manager Jyoti Kumar on August 18, “regarding the alleged offences of criminal conspiracy, cheating, criminal breach of trust and criminal misconduct” by RCom, Ambani, unknown public servants and others. The state-owned bank alleged that it was cheated to the tune of ₹2,929.05 crore.

The FIR stated that the accused, as part of a criminal conspiracy, obtained credit facilities from SBI in favour of RCom through misrepresentation and subsequently misutilised or diverted the funds received from the bank.