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In a surprising U-turn, Anjani Sinha, former managing director and CEO of the National Spot Exchange Ltd (NSEL), has blamed the entire board of the exchange for the Rs 5,600-crore payment crisis.
In a fresh affidavit filed on Friday, Sinha said his August 14 affidavit, in which he had taken the entire blame on himself and his management team, was “filed under duress” and he was forced to do so by the NSEL board, which knew everything. The affidavit, Sinha said, was “authorised at the office of the exchange” and he alone should not be held responsible for the scam.
Though Mumbai police said the fresh affidavit had “little evidentiary value”, Sinha’s fresh disclosure could nevertheless make things difficult for the NSEL board, including Financial Technologies promoter Jignesh Shah and former MCX-SX Managing Director and CEO Joseph Massey.
Financial Technologies is the promoter of NSEL and MCX-SX is a sister concern.
In a statement, the exchange’s spokesperson said, “The allegations made by the accused against the board members, including Jignesh Shah and Joseph Massey, should not be taken at face value. The matter is under investigation and we cannot comment further.”
Sinha, who was arrested on Thursday and produced before a metropolitan magistrate’s court in Mumbai on Friday, would remain in police custody till October 31 for interrogation. The court also extended the police custody of Jai Bahukhandi, former assistant vice-president of warehousing at NSEL, and Amit Mukherjee, former assistant vice-president of business development, till Wednesday.
Mukherjee’s counsel told the court that Shah was the “mastermind” of the scam and his client had been forced to take the blame for the scam, ïn which many other “influential people” were involved.
Though Sinha claimed he had not gained anything personally from the scam, the economic offences wing (EOW) of the Mumbai police said there were enough grounds to believe this was not true.
In his fresh affidavit, Sinha said the “promoters, directors and key management personnel are responsible for the lack of proper systems. The entire software application was used and designed by Financial Technologies”. Sinha also said the board members were always aware of the increasing exposure.
He claimed that he was not delegated any authority or any power to take crucial decisions in respect of affairs of the exchange. EOW’s Additional Commissioner of Police, Rajvardhan, said Massey met him to share some key information with regard to the payment crisis. “During our meeting, I also called Sinha. Both of them had worked together for a long time. They said hello to each other,” he said.
Rajvardhan said the police would in a day or two start invocation of the provisions of the Maharashtra Protection of Interest of Depositors Act, 1999, (in Financial Establishment Act) against NSEL promoters, defaulters and borrowers. “Initially, we will start the attachment process of defaulters and later of promoters and borrowers. Two deputy collectors from the Mumbai and Mumbai suburban collectorates will work as the competent authority for the disposal of movable assets,” he said.
Police also questioned the director of NK Proteins, a defaulter. Auditors were verifying the records of defaulters, with some of them seeking time till Friday to make the necessary repayment to the exchange.
In a fresh affidavit filed on Friday, Sinha said his August 14 affidavit, in which he had taken the entire blame on himself and his management team, was “filed under duress” and he was forced to do so by the NSEL board, which knew everything. The affidavit, Sinha said, was “authorised at the office of the exchange” and he alone should not be held responsible for the scam.
Though Mumbai police said the fresh affidavit had “little evidentiary value”, Sinha’s fresh disclosure could nevertheless make things difficult for the NSEL board, including Financial Technologies promoter Jignesh Shah and former MCX-SX Managing Director and CEO Joseph Massey.
Financial Technologies is the promoter of NSEL and MCX-SX is a sister concern.
In a statement, the exchange’s spokesperson said, “The allegations made by the accused against the board members, including Jignesh Shah and Joseph Massey, should not be taken at face value. The matter is under investigation and we cannot comment further.”
Sinha, who was arrested on Thursday and produced before a metropolitan magistrate’s court in Mumbai on Friday, would remain in police custody till October 31 for interrogation. The court also extended the police custody of Jai Bahukhandi, former assistant vice-president of warehousing at NSEL, and Amit Mukherjee, former assistant vice-president of business development, till Wednesday.
Mukherjee’s counsel told the court that Shah was the “mastermind” of the scam and his client had been forced to take the blame for the scam, ïn which many other “influential people” were involved.
Though Sinha claimed he had not gained anything personally from the scam, the economic offences wing (EOW) of the Mumbai police said there were enough grounds to believe this was not true.
In his fresh affidavit, Sinha said the “promoters, directors and key management personnel are responsible for the lack of proper systems. The entire software application was used and designed by Financial Technologies”. Sinha also said the board members were always aware of the increasing exposure.
He claimed that he was not delegated any authority or any power to take crucial decisions in respect of affairs of the exchange. EOW’s Additional Commissioner of Police, Rajvardhan, said Massey met him to share some key information with regard to the payment crisis. “During our meeting, I also called Sinha. Both of them had worked together for a long time. They said hello to each other,” he said.
Rajvardhan said the police would in a day or two start invocation of the provisions of the Maharashtra Protection of Interest of Depositors Act, 1999, (in Financial Establishment Act) against NSEL promoters, defaulters and borrowers. “Initially, we will start the attachment process of defaulters and later of promoters and borrowers. Two deputy collectors from the Mumbai and Mumbai suburban collectorates will work as the competent authority for the disposal of movable assets,” he said.
Police also questioned the director of NK Proteins, a defaulter. Auditors were verifying the records of defaulters, with some of them seeking time till Friday to make the necessary repayment to the exchange.
