YES Bank crisis: Rana Kapoor in ED custody, faces Rs 4K-cr kickback probe

12 shell firms, 2 UK assets, 44 paintings under ED scanner; London-bound daughter stopped at Mumbai Airport; CBI books Kapoor and Wadhawan on charges of cheating.

YES Bank Crisis : The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has found that YES Bank co-founder Rana Kapoor and his family set up over a dozen shell firms that were allegedly used for receiving kickbacks to the tune of Rs 4,300 crore and invested in properties illegally.

The agency arrested Kapoor, 62, early Sunday morning in connection with a money-laundering probe — three days after the Reserve Bank put YES Bank under a 30-day moratorium and superseded its board. Kapoor was produced in a Mumbai sessions court, which remanded him in ED custody till March 11. The agency told the court that Kapoor’s custody was required to investigate the role of some companies run by his family members, and are directly and indirectly controlled by him.

“Kapoor obtained undue pecuniary advantage from DHFL (Dewan Housing Finance Corporation) in the matter of investments in the debenture of DHFL by YES Bank, through the companies held by his wife and daughters. It is also apprehended that Kapoor had misused his official position in several other transactions and obtained illegal kickbacks directly or indirectly through entities controlled by him and his family members,” the ED said in the remand to court, which was seen by the Business Standard.

“Prima facie, there appears to be generation and laundering of proceeds of crime to the tune of Rs 4,300 crore by the ‘accused’ persons under Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002,” the ED said, adding further investigation into the money trail of the proceeds was under progress.

Sources said these firms used the kickback amounts to buy properties valued at Rs 2,000 crore. The current market value of the assets could be more than Rs 5,000 crore, said ED officials.

The agency is in possession of some crucial documents that show Kapoor bought two properties in the UK, and their valuation of which is underway. The probe agency also seized 44 paintings from Kapoor’s residence.

Roshini, Kapoor’s daughter, was stopped by immigration authorities from taking a Mumbai-London flight as a look-out-circular had been issued against Kapoor family members by the ED. The ED started its probe last Friday based on a first information report (FIR) filed by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI). The CBI in the FIR alleged Kapoor entered into a criminal conspiracy with DHFL promoters Kapil Wadhawan and others for extending financial assistance to DHFL by YES Bank in lieu of substantial undue benefits to himself and his family members through the companies held by them.

Runway repairs: 100 flights cancelled at IGIA, fares up 100% on some routes

The fare of one-way tickets from Delhi shot up to almost Rs 30,000.

Just as passengers were dealing with delays and disruptions at Delhi's Indira Gandhi International Airport due to repairs on one of the three runways since yesterday, November 15, they were hit with dearer spot airfares in and out of Delhi. Adding to the woes, about 100 daily flights have also been cancelled for the next eight days, according to The Times of India report.

As seen on various travel apps and websites, the fare of one-way tickets from Delhi shot up to almost Rs 30,000. For example, the Delhi-Mumbai flight airfares showed high airfares ranging from Rs 15,000 to Rs 29,000 on travel portals.

November 16 flight fares from Delhi

Mumbai- Rs 9,427 - Rs 28,974

Kolkata- Rs 11,401 - Rs 31,425

Chennai - Rs 8,303 - Rs 28,712

Bengaluru - Rs 17,752 - Rs 29,447

Hyderabad - Rs 9,773 - Rs 21,870

Source: MakeMytrip.com

“Spot fares in some sectors have gone up by up to 100 per cent as it is weekend and the inventory of lower advance purchase-priced tickets has been sold out. What is available for spot sale is the higher category fares. With close to 100 flights less per day when the runway will be shut (Nov 16-23), the demand-supply mismatch has added to higher fares,” A Kalsi of Delhi’s Ambe Travels told TOI.

One of IGIA's runways will be closed for repairs for 13 days starting Thursday, according to a communication. The airport, operated by DIAL, is the busiest aerodrome in the country. Runway 27/09 would be closed for "preventive repairs" next month while two other runways -- 11/29 and 10/28 -- would be operational.

The airport handled 63.5 million passengers in 2017-18. The airport has around 1,300 flight movements every day.

In a statement, DIAL said it was planning the closure of runway 27/09 to carry out preventive repairs.

"The works are scheduled to be undertaken for 13-day duration starting from November 15, 2018. This will lower the capacity of IGI Airport by 50 arrivals and 50 departures per day in this duration," a DIAL spokesperson said.

The spokesperson also said these works are essential for safe aircraft operations and to avoid sudden disruptions that cause greater impact due to the time required for planning the logistics.

Business Standard