Money Laundering Case: ED files charge sheet against Gujarat-based firm director

New Delhi: The Enforcement Directorate has filed a charge sheet against Gujarat-based pharma firm Sterling Biotech Limited's director Rajbhushan Omprakash Dixit in a bank loan fraud case of over Rs 5,000 crore.

The charge sheet was filed before Additional Sessions Judge Satish Arora by special public prosecutor Nitesh Rana and advocate A R Aditya.

The ED has accused the company of taking loans of over Rs 5,000 crore from a consortium led by Andhra Bank which had turned into non-performing assets.

The court had on February 9 sent Dixit to judicial custody in the money laundering case.

The agency had in February arrested a former director of Andhra Bank, Anup Prakash Garg, and Delhi-based businessman Gagan Dhawan last November in connection with the case.

They were named as accused in the cases by the ED and the CBI.

The ED registered a money laundering case in this instance after taking cognizance of an earlier CBI FIR.

The CBI had booked Sterling Biotech, its directors Chetan Jayantilal Sandesara, DiChetan Sandesara, Dixit, Nitin Jayantilal Sandesara and Vilas Joshi, chartered accountant Hemant Hathi, Garg and some unidentified persons in connection with the alleged bank fraud case.

The FIR alleged that the total pending dues of the group companies were Rs 5,383 crore as on December 31, 2016.