An appellate tribunal has held former ICICI Bank CEO Chanda Kochhar guilty of accepting a Rs 64 crore bribe in connection with sanctioning a Rs 300 crore loan to the Videocon Group, The Times of India reported.
In a detailed order dated July 3, the tribunal confirmed that Kochhar received the bribe through a “quid pro quo” involving her husband Deepak Kochhar and a Videocon-linked company.
The Enforcement Directorate (ED)’s case was supported by findings that Kochhar did not disclose a clear conflict of interest while approving the loan. The payment was routed from Videocon’s SEPL to NuPower Renewables Pvt Ltd (NRPL), controlled by Deepak Kochhar, the day after the loan was disbursed.
Though NRPL was officially owned by Videocon Chairman Venugopal Dhoot, Deepak Kochhar held actual control as its managing director. The tribunal cited direct evidence of quid pro quo arrangements backed by statements under Section 50 of the PMLA Act.
The tribunal also criticized a 2020 decision to release Rs 78 crore worth of Kochhar’s attached assets, calling it flawed and overlooking key evidence.
The order concluded that the loan approval and fund transfers demonstrated misuse of authority and breach of ICICI Bank policies, justifying the ED’s continued attachment of assets.
