 "A Kingfisher Airlines aircraft is seen parked at the airport in New Delhi")
Former Chief Financial Officer (CFO) of long-grounded carrier Kingfisher Airlines, A Raghunathan Friday appeared before the Enforcement Directorate for questioning in connection with its money laundering probe in the alleged default of over Rs 900 crore loan from IDBI bank.
The ED had issued summons to over half a dozen officials of the IDBI bank and Vijay Mallya-owned KFA under provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) wherein all the individuals have been asked to submit details about their personal finances and Income Tax Returns (ITRs) of last five years to the investigators.
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"We had summoned Raghunathan and he appeared before us for questioning this morning," said an ED official here.
"His questioning is important to throw light on various financial transactions, as many of them are in his personal domain," he said.
According to the official, in his statement to the SFIO, recorded last month, Raghunathan has blamed Mallya (for the financial crisis that befell KFA) and said he worked as per the directions from the latter.
Apart from Raghunathan, summons have also been issued to former Chairman and Managing Director of the bank, Yogesh Agarwal and other senior executive members and officials of both the organisations.
Yesterday, officials had indicated that the agency will question some important functionaries of the bank and the airlines before they decide on issuing summons to the main player and liquor baron Mallya in the case.
The ED recently registered a money laundering case against Mallya and others based on a CBI FIR registered last year. The agency is also investigating the overall financial structure of Kingfisher Airlines and if any possible kick backs were made.
The ED has pressed charges under various sections of the PMLA against Mallya and others named in the CBI complaint.
The CBI had booked Mallya, director of Kingfisher Airlines, the company, Raghunathan and unknown officials of IDBI Bank in its FIR alleging that the loan was sanctioned in violation of norms regarding credit limits.
The ED is looking into the "proceeds of crime" that would have been generated using the slush funds of the alleged loan fraud and it is also probing if some of this amount was sent abroad illegally, they said.
The Attorney General had yesterday informed the Supreme Court that Mallya has left the country a week ago.
Commenting on the matter, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley
had said in Parliament that India will now have to initiate extradition process after a charge sheet is filed to bring back the embattled tycoon to face money laundering charges as well as recovery of the Rs 9,400 crore of loans to his defunct Kingfisher Airlines.
Cancellation of passport "does not result in automatic deportation, that is the stand taken by UK," Jaitley said.
Sources, however, said filing a charge sheet is a time taking process and hence some other legal options will surely be mulled to make Mallya join probe in India, not only by the ED but by the CBI too.
The agency is also preparing to issue Letters Rogatories (LRs) to certain countries, including South Africa and the UK, for obtaining information on his overseas assets.
Official sources said the agency has obtained details about immovable and movable assets held by the United Breweries (UB) Chairman in a number of countries and investigators are looking at countries like South Africa, UK, the US, Hong Kong and France, as part of its probe conducted till now in the case.
Mallya had left India on March 2 using his diplomatic passport.
The ED has registered a money laundering case against Mallya and others based on an FIR registered last year by the CBI.
The agency is also investigating financial structure of the now defunct Kingfisher Airlines and looking into any payment of kickbacks to secure loans.
