ED arrests retired UCO bank CMD Subodh Goel in Rs 6,200 crore loan fraud case

NEW DELHI: Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Saturday arrested Subodh Goel, retired chairman and MD of UCO Bank, from his residence here for allegedly taking bribes to sanction loans of more than Rs 6,200 crore.

Goel, who had been appointed to the post under the UPA govt, was produced before a special court in Kolkata, which remanded him to ED custody until Wednesday.

"Investigation revealed that during the tenure of Goel as CMD, large credit facilities were sanctioned to Concast Steel & Power Ltd, which were subsequently diverted and siphoned off by the borrower. In turn, Goel received substantial illegal gratifications from CSPL," ED claimed.

The agency has already attached properties worth Rs 510 crore of CSPL linked to its promoter, Sanjay Surekha. He was arrested on Dec 18 last year and continues to be in judicial custody. ED filed a chargesheet in the case on Feb 15.

ED claimed illegal gratification was layered and channelled through various entities to give it a "facade" of legitimacy. "Goel received cash, properties, luxury goods, etc routed through shell companies, dummy persons and family members to conceal the origin of the money," ED said.