M A I N   N E W S

Judicial remand for Parekh

Mumbai, March 31
Leading stock broker Ketan Parekh and Jagdish Pandya, branch manager of Madhavpura Cooperative Bank, arrested in connection with the pay order scam, were today remanded in judicial custody till April 9 by a designated court here.

The counsel for both urged for bail but the court was not inclined to grant liberty, and therefore, the plea was withdrawn at the last moment. The court also dismissed their plea to allow them to meet their relatives for some time every day while in judicial custody. The CBI objected saying other accused in this case were relatives of Ketan Parekh and hence such a plea should not be entertained. Mr Parekh was arrested yesterday while Pandya was taken into custody this morning.

Top stockbroker Ketan Parekh (centre) is led out of the sessions court by CBI men on Saturday. — AFP photo

The CBI named 11 accused in the remand application. Among them are Ketan Parekh, Kirti Kumar Parekh, Director, Panther Investrade Ltd, Kartik Parekh, Director, Panther Investrade Ltd, Navinchandra Parekh, Chairman, Fortune Ltd, M/s Classic Credit Ltd, Calcutta, M/s Panther Investrade Ltd, Panther Fin Cap and Management Services, certain officers of Madhavpura Cooperative Bank, officers of M/s Classic Credit and Panther Fin Cap, officers of the Bank of India and other officers.

Seeking their remand, CBI prosecutor Bharat Singh Raghuvanshi alleged that Parekh had conspired with Pandya to defraud Bank of India to the tune of Rs 137 crore through 13 pay orders issued by Madhavpura Cooperative Bank’s Mandvi branch here in favour of Parekh’s firms.

The CBI disclosed that on March 8, six pay orders were issued by Madhavpura Bank and seven others on the next day. They were presented to the Bank of India which credited the total amount of Rs 137 crore in the accounts of Classic Credit Ltd (Rs 65 crore), Panther Fin Cap and Management Services Ltd (Rs 52 crore) and the Panther Investrade (Rs 20 crore).

When pay orders were sent for clearing, Madhavpura Cooperative Bank failed to meet its liability and also did not participate in the clearing operations. By then, the funds had been credited to the accounts of Parekh’s firms. In this way, the money was siphoned off and Bank of India was cheated, the court was told.

Mr Parekh’s counsel Sirish Gupte argued that the money had not been siphoned off. It remained in the banking system. He said his client had paid Rs 7 crore from his individual account which reflected on his conduct.

In the past also, Mr Parekh had obtained pay orders and never before such situation had risen, his lawyer said. Mr Parekh wanted to pay off his liability amounting to Rs 137 crore but the Income Tax Department had raided his premises on March 23 and also instructed him not to operate bank accounts. So he could not pay the amount.

NEW DELHI: Major Left parties on Saturday castigated the Vajpayee government for its “harmful” economic policies which they said “promoted gross corrupt practices and loot of bank funds” as the Ketan Parekh “scandal” had shown.

In separate statements, the CPI and the CPM charged the government and, in particular, Finance Minister Yashwant Sinha with economic “mismanagement” saying, the “Ketan Parekh scandal is yet another blot on the Vajpayee government’s disgraceful record. The Finance Minister has direct responsibility and much to answer”.

It said neither SEBI nor the RBI had been able to put in place effective regime to check insider trading, rigging of share prices by a cartel of brokers and misuse of bank funds. PTI

CVC report on defence deals
Tribune News Service

New Delhi, March 31
The final report on the defence deals since April 1989 was submitted today by the Central Vigilance Commissioner, Mr N. Vittal, to the Defence Minister, Mr Jaswant Singh.

The report assumes significance in the wake of the Tehelka expose for the CVC had examined in detail all major contracts entered into by the Defence Ministry and the Services Headquarters.

Jawan, 3 ultras die in encounter

Srinagar, March 31
Nine persons, including three militants and two security personnel, were killed since yesterday in Jammu and Kashmir, while normal life was disrupted in Srinagar today following a strike call given by the Pakistan-based Lashker-e-Toiba.

Three LeT militants were shot dead in a day-long encounter in Rajouri district yesterday, an official spokesman said. An Army jawan was also killed during the fight.

Reports from Udhampur district said a group of militants entered the house of Abdul Rashid at Thral village and opened fire, killing his wife Fattu Begum and injuring two others, including Rashid, who later succumbed to his injuries. PTI, UNI