New Delhi, July 4 (IANS) The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Saturday said that it has arrested Amit Bapna, former Chief Financial Officer of Reliance Capital Ltd, in connection with the ongoing investigation into the Reliance ADA Group cases.

According to the CBI, the investigation has revealed that Amit Bapna — who served as Chief Financial Officer of Reliance Capital Ltd from August 2014 to December 2019 — was one of the key decision-makers responsible for managing the financial affairs of the company.

He allegedly facilitated and approved loans to intermediary and conduit companies despite being aware that such lending was contrary to RBI guidelines and the sanction conditions governing borrowings from public sector banks, the CBI said, adding that investigation further revealed that funds borrowed by Reliance Commercial Finance Limited (RCFL) were diverted through such intermediary entities to various Reliance ADA Group companies, including Reliance Capital Ltd., Reliance Infrastructure Ltd. and Reliance Power Ltd., thereby causing wrongful loss to the lending banks and corresponding wrongful gain to the accused persons and related entities.

Bapna was in judicial custody in a case being investigated by the Enforcement Directorate (ED), and was lodged in Central Jail, Tihar, here.

In addition, the CBI obtained a Production Warrant from a Special CBI Court in Mumbai to secure his custody in the present case, and he was produced before the court and formally arrested on July 4.

The court has granted the agency four days’ custody of the accused for further interrogation.

The CBI has so far registered seven FIRs against Reliance Communications Ltd. (RCom), Reliance Home Finance Ltd. (RHFL), Reliance Commercial Finance Ltd. (RCFL) and Reliance Telecom Ltd. (RTL) based on complaints from various public sector banks and the Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC). The investigation is being monitored by the Supreme Court.

The agency had filed its first chargesheet in the RCom case on May 29 against 16 accused, including the company, five senior RCom executives and 10 bank officials.

With Bapna’s arrest, the CBI has so far arrested six accused in connection with the Reliance ADA Group cases.

“Further investigation is underway,” the CBI said.

–IANS

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