The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Friday provisionally attached the Mumbai apartment and other assets of former ICICI Bank CEO and MD Chanda Kochhar, who is being investigated for loan fraud.
Kochhar’s assets attached by ED include a flat in which she is currently living and three properties of husband including farm houses. The book value of these properties is ₹78 crore, while the market value is ₹600 crore.
ED has termed the flat at CCI Chambers, Churchgate, as an “illegal gain”; Kochhar has lived there since 1997. It has been alleged that this flat was owned by a Videocon entity - QTAPL (Quality Appliances Pvt Ltd, now named Quality Techno Advisors Pvt Ltd) from 2009 till 2016.
Kochhar was accused of playing a role in grant of out-of-turn loans to the tune of ₹3,250 crore to Videocon Group. She is being probed by CBI and ED for alleged corruption and money laundering and has been named as accused along with her husband Deepak Kochhar in the FIR filed by CBI.
Kochhar, who stepped down from ICICI Bank on October 4, 2018, defended herself before the ED in March 2019 saying the loans were given on merit and have no link with her husband’s business.
{{/usCountry}}Kochhar, who stepped down from ICICI Bank on October 4, 2018, defended herself before the ED in March 2019 saying the loans were given on merit and have no link with her husband’s business.
{{/usCountry}}The CBI had last year issued a look out circular (LoC) at all the airports against Kochhar, her husband and Venugopal Dhoot of Videocon group, to ensure they cannot travel out of India.