The Kolkata zonal office of the Enforcement Directorate (ED) on May 16 arrested Subodh Kumar Goel, a former chairperson and managing director (CMD) of UCO Bank, over alleged diversion and siphoning of funds worth over ₹6,000 crores
According to a statement by the ED, the case against Mr Goel relates to the sanction of credit facilities to Concast Steel & Power Ltd. (CSPL) and subsequent large-scale diversion and siphoning of loan funds amounting to ₹6,210.72 crores.
Mr. Goel was arrested from his Delhi residence and produced in a special court in Kolkata on May 17. The ED was granted custody of Mr. Goel till May 21.
His arrest followed an ED investigation based on a First Information Report filed by the Bank Securities and Frauds Branch of the Central Bureau of Investigation.
Notably, there is an ongoing ED investigation against CSPL and others in a bank fraud case under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002. During the investigation, immovable properties related to Sanjay Surekha and CSPL worth almost Rs 510 crores were provisionally attached by the ED.
The ED investigation on Mr Goel revealed that during his tenure as the CMD of UCO Bank, the bank had sanctioned large credit facilities to CSPL, which were then diverted and siphoned off by the borrower group.
In turn, Mr Goel was found to have received significant illegal ‘gifts’ from CSPL, like cash, immovable properties, luxury goods, hotel bookings, etc. These were routed through different channels like shell companies, dummy persons, and family members to hide the source of the money, which was linked to CSPL.
According to the ED statement, these shell entities are beneficially owned or controlled by Mr Goel and his family members. The ED conducted searches on May 22 at various locations across the country, including the residences of Mr Goel and other related persons. They recovered various incriminating materials, including evidence reportedly detailing various illegal gratifications received by Mr. Goel.
Published – May 21, 2025 09:58 am IST
