Yes Bank-DHFL loan fraud: PMLA court seeks reports on Avinash Bhosale, Sanjay Chhabaria from JJ Hospital

MUMBAI: A special PMLA (Prevention of Money Laundering Act) court has directed JJ Hospital to submit a detailed report on hospitalisation and ailments suffered by high-profile Pune businessman Avinash Bhosale and builder Sanjay Chhabaria, both of whom are arrested in connection with the Yes Bank - DHFL loan fraud.

Chhabaria was admitted to JJ Hospital 10 days ago and Bhosale was shifted from the state-run hospital to GT Hospital around two months back. In July, while rejecting Bhosale’s bail plea, special PMLA judge MG Deshpande observed that he spent most of his time in hospital after he was remanded to judicial custody.

“It is noticed that, once the court remanded both of them in judicial custody, after some days jail superintendent and chief medical officer, working in the jail, take immediate cognizance of illness, if any, of these two accused persons and forthwith refer them to Sir JJ Hospital where such accused persons are admitted and thereafter the jail superintendent forwards only reports pretending that nothing is in his hands, as the control of prisoner is taken by the hospital authority,” the court has said.

In Bhosale’s case, the court has also sought to know as to why he had been shifted to GT Hospital and not treated in JJ Hospital itself and why he was always referred to GT Hospital, unlike the routine practice of referring the inmates to JJ Hospital. The court further questioned what was his ailment which cannot be treated at JJ Hospital and in the past how many such patients have been referred to GT Hospital. Besides, the court has also asked why Bhosale has not recovered even after such a long hospitalisation.

In Chhabaria’s case, the court has asked similar questions to JJ Hospital and asked them to submit a detailed report along with respective medical documents as early as possible.

The court issued the directive after several allegations of misuse of medical facilities by the accused. Recently, the Wadhawan brothers were caught misusing the liberty of their hospital visits and seven police personnel from Navi Mumbai have been suspended for allegedly granting them undue liberty to sit in private cars, use mobile phones and laptops and meet outsiders.

According to the CBI, between April and June 2018, Yes Bank had invested around ₹4,727 crore in short-term non-convertible debentures and Masala Bonds of DHFL. The bank had also sanctioned a term loan of ₹750 crore to a DHFL group firm.

In return, the then Yes Bank MD and CEO Rana Kapoor received a kickback of ₹600 crore from DHFL in the form of a loan to his family firm, Do It Urban Ventures (India) Private Limited, the CBI had said, adding that Avinash Bhosale group companies had received ₹569.22 crore from DHFL, including funds routed through Radius Group of builder Sanjay Chhabria.