Former ICICI Bank CEO Chanda Kochhar was on Friday granted bail by a special PMLA court on a bond of Rs 5 lakh in connection to a money laundering case involving the ICICI Bank and the Videocon Group. The court has asked her not to leave the country without permission. Her husband Deepak Kochhar, who was arrested in September last year, continues to remain in jail.
The special court for Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) had summoned Chanda Kochhar, her husband Deepak Kochhar, Videocon Group promoter Venugopal Dhoot along with other accused on January 30 after taking cognisance of the charge sheet by the Enforcement Directorate (ED). Kochhar had appeared before the court and filed a bail plea through her lawyer Vijay Agarwal.
The ED had filed a criminal case against Chanda Kochhar, Deepak Kochhar and Videocon Group’s Venugopal Dhoot accusing them of money laundering. The agency alleged irregularities and corrupt practices in the sanctioning of Rs 1,875 crore in loans by ICICI Bank. The agency is also investigating two other loans granted by the bank with Kochhar at the helm. She was sacked in 2019 by the bank.
In January, ED attached properties worth Rs 78 crore belonging to her. Kochhar has been accused of misusing her position in the company and providing Rs 3,250-crore loan to the Videocon Group on a quid pro quo basis in 2012.
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