VMSCL MD arrested for money laundering

The ED has initiated money laundering investigation on the basis of FIR filed by the CBI against the company.

Hyderabad: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Wednesday arrested V Hima Bindu, managing director of VMCSL for allegedly indulging in money laundering and causing a loss of around Rs 3,316 crore to a consortium of public sector banks.

The ED has initiated money laundering investigation on the basis of FIR filed by the CBI against the company. The company had taken loans from a consortium of banks and the present dues outstanding to all the banks is worth Rs 3,316 crore, according to a press release.

The forensic audit revealed that the company circulated loans to various related entities to inflate its books of accounts. It also revealed that PISL, a related entity was given three per cent commission amount by VMCSL for all receipts from BSNL without any specific role of PISL in BSNL tenders, the press release said.

The forensic audit further revealed that VMCSL had opened various Letters of Credit (LCs) worth Rs 692 crore in the name of dummy entities, which were subsequently devolved.
Hima Bindu through her company and with the active assistance of her brother V Satish, MD of PISL, in order to dodge the banks, created false/exaggerated operational revenues by generating fake sales and purchase invoices through the companies controlled by their directors and family members.

Hima Bindu siphoned off a part of proceeds of crime by remitting it to overseas entities controlled by her family members. Earlier, on July 20, 2021, searches were conducted by the ED on the residential premises of Hima Bindu, Satish and V Madhavi and lots of incriminating documents and digital data in form of 40 external hard discs, half a dozen mobile phones and two laptops have been recovered.

The prime accused was not responding to the ED summons and not supplying the documents of her companies and transactions on one pretext or the other and blatantly lying regarding their foreign transactions.

Hence, Hima Bindu has been arrested under Section 19 of Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA)-2002 and has been produced before PMLA special court. She was remanded to judicial custody till August 18.