Probe into Topline case lags for lack of details

The investigation into the alleged cheating and criminal breach of trust involving Topline Shoes has not moved further as the city police are still awaiting for records from the Mumbai branches of two nationalised banks.

In July the Vadodara city police had registered a criminal case against HMG Murthy, managing director and six directors on board including former cricket player Sunil Gavaskar, for allegedly cheating shareholders of Topline Shoes.

"We are yet to receive the bank records from the Mumbai branches of Corporation Bank and Canara Bank. We have repeatedly asked these banks to furnish records of transactions made by Murthy. From records available we have learnt that the money that Murthy received from these banks had been utilised for the purchase of assets. The entries in the books of Topline Shoes are corresponding with the assets of plants and office," said Sudhir Sinha, commissioner of police, Vadodara city.

The industrial finance branch of Corporation Bank and the Canara Bank branch in Mumbai have been postponing the submission of records saying that the books of the banks were not computerised at the time of their deal with Murthy.

Meanwhile, the Hyderabad police have released Murthy from custody. The Andhra Pradesh police, following a complaint filed by the Videocon Group, had arrested Murthy in early October.

Murthy had claimed that the company could not survive as Canara Bank and the Corporation Bank released only Rs 60 lakh of the sanctioned loan of Rs 4.5 crore as working capital.

Murthy was not available for comments.

The Vadodara city police are also probing into the company not filing results with the Registrar of Companies (RoC) and Sebi from 1991-2000. Following this, the company was delisted from the Bombay Stock Exchange and the National Stock Exchange.

"We are ascertaining the way of filing company results. Murthy is claiming that the company had furnished the financial results to RoC," said Sinha.