Rs.83 crore Fraud in Union Bank and Bank of India, CBI issues Letters of Rogatory to US and UAE

A special CBI court has directed the issuance of Letters of Rogatory to authorities in the United States and the United Arab Emirates, seeking judicial assistance in connection with an alleged ₹83 crore bank fraud involving Pushpak Bullions Pvt Ltd.

The company’s directors, Chandrakant Patel and Amit Yogesh Sampat, in collusion with others, secured credit facilities worth ₹140 crore from nationalised banks by submitting forged financial statements with inflated figures. The funds were then siphoned off, causing losses of ₹70.48 crore to Union Bank of India and ₹12.71 crore to Bank of India.

The CBI informed the court that a portion of the diverted funds was routed to Pushpak Mining & Exploration LLC, a company incorporated in the UAE by Chandrakant Patel. Pushpak Bullions holds an 81% stake in this entity, which later acquired Pine Creek Mining Inc to develop the Gold Basin Mine in the United States.

As the matter is related to foreign countries, CBI had requested court to issue Letters of Rogatory. On September 9, Special CBI Judge V. P. Desai granted the agency’s plea for issuing Letters of Rogatory.

What are Letters of Rogatory?

Letters of Rogatory (LoR) are formal requests sent by one country’s court to a court in another country, asking for judicial assistance in gathering evidence or carrying out certain legal procedures in connection with an investigation or trial.

They are usually used when:

• Evidence, witnesses, or documents are located in another country.
• Authorities need help such as recording witness statements, serving summons, or obtaining bank/financial records abroad.