Delhi Police's Economic Offences Wing (EOW) has arrested Reliance Power Limited's Chief Financial Officer, Ashok Kumar Pal, along with two other individuals, in connection with an alleged bank guarantee fraud totaling ₹136 crore. The arrests, made on April 15, are a significant development in a high-value financial crime case linked to a government renewable energy tender.
Key Accused Identified in Fraud Case
The individuals taken into custody include Ashok Kumar Pal, 50, CFO of Reliance Power Ltd; Partha Sarathi Biswal, 54, Managing Director of Odisha-based Biswal Tradelink Pvt Ltd; and Amarnath Dutta, 50, a Kolkata-based individual. All three have been remanded to police custody until April 23, as confirmed by Deputy Commissioner of Police (EOW) Subodh Kumar Goswami.
Allegations of Forged Bank Guarantees
The investigation stems from a complaint filed by Biblesh Meena, a manager at the Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI). The complaint alleges that Reliance NU BESS Ltd, a subsidiary of Reliance Power, submitted two forged bank guarantees, each valued at ₹68.2 crore, as security for a renewable energy tender issued by SECI.
Investigators stated that these guarantees were purportedly issued by foreign financial institutions: ACE Investment Bank, Malaysia, and FirstRand Bank Ltd, Manila. To lend credibility, these documents were reportedly accompanied by authenticated confirmations routed through the Structured Financial Messaging System (SFMS) of the State Bank of India (SBI).
Fabricated Confirmations and Ongoing Probe
However, the EOW has alleged that these confirmations, including various emails and SFMS messages, were entirely fabricated. The State Bank of India has reportedly denied issuing any such authentication or endorsements related to the bank guarantees in question.
Police findings suggest a broader criminal conspiracy involving senior officials of Reliance Power and external intermediaries. Authorities allege that these forged bank guarantees were arranged through intermediaries, with the fabricated SBI confirmations used to secure the SECI tender. The probe also indicates that substantial sums of money may have been exchanged to facilitate the creation and use of these fraudulent documents. Further investigation is ongoing to trace the financial trail and identify additional individuals involved in the alleged conspiracy.