Enforcement Directorate’s (ED) probe into the Yes Bank crisis has unearthed names of big defaulters who had associations with the Bank. During a debate on defaulters in the Parliament, the opposition took a jibe at the ruling party, while the latter responded strongly to the critics.
Crux of the Matter
ED Unearths Big Names While probing the Yes Bank and its co-founder Rana Kapoor, Enforcement Directorate (ED) has dug names of the recent defaulters. ED has issued summons to Reliance Group Chairman Anil Ambani, DHFL’s promoter Kapil Wadhwan, Essel Group Chairman Subhash Chandra, Con & Kings’ promoter Peter Kerkar, Jet Airways founder Naresh Goyal, etc. in the probe against Rana Kapoor for money laundering. Anil Ambani was questioned by the ED regarding stressed loans that were sanctioned to Reliance Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group (ADAG). Ambani filed an adjournment application and has sought more time. ED is probing into loans of over Rs. 20,000 crores for quid pro quo (a favor or advantage granted in return for something), irregularities, and diversion by Kapoor, who will be in ED custody till 20 March 2020.
These properties that were kept on mortgage were actually the illegal gratification, which Kapoor has received on advancing loans to entities without due diligence and were not in line with the Banking Regulation Act. – Enforcement Directorate (ED) Official
RaGa Tries to Roar in Parliament During the question hour session of the Parliament, the Congress leader Rahul Gandhi took a jibe at the ruling party and said that the government was not providing information on the top 50 wilful defaulters. He later said that asking questions was his right but was cut short by House Speaker Om Birla. In response, sources close to Birla said that Rahul Gandhi’s speech crossed the 12 PM mark and allowing him to continue would have been a violation of the House procedure.
Anurag’s Strong Reply Minister of State for Finance and Corporate Affairs, Anurag Thakur replied to the question posed by Rahul Gandhi by saying that the list of the defaulters is available on the Central Information Commission’s website and is in the public domain. The list contains names of people who have a default amount over Rs. 25 lakhs. Congress’ Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury said that Nirmala Sitharaman should be replying to the question posed by Rahul Gandhi. However, Speaker Om Birla said that the response to the questions posed in the question-hour session is given by a junior Minister. After the Speaker dismissed the Parliament at the noon hour, it witnessed a noisy ruckus and the Congress staged a walkout.
Curiopedia
Who is a Wilful Defaulter? When you hear that someone has defaulted on a loan, the word default indicates that she was unable to repay the loan. A wilful defaulter is a person or a company that has failed to pay back the loan despite having the ability to repay it. As per RBI regulations, there are broad areas of wilful default: non-payment of dues despite a steady cash flow and net worth, misrepresentation of records, fraudulent transactions, siphoning off funds, etc. More Info
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