Subhash Chandra booked in Rs 1,322 cr LICHFL loan case
The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has filed an FIR against Essel Group chairman Subhash Chandra and others. They are accused of inflating Chandra’s personal net worth to secure two loans worth Rs 980 crore from LIC Housing Finance Ltd. These loans later defaulted, leading to a reported loss of over Rs 1,322 crore for the public-sector lender. LICHFL filed the complaint on August 31.
The agency registered the case on the same day, alleging criminal conspiracy, cheating, criminal breach of trust, and related offences. Officials said the loans were approved in 2018 based on Chandra’s ongoing personal guarantees and two net worth certificates that listed him as extremely wealthy.
The first loan of Rs 500 crore was given to Vasant Sagar Properties Pvt Ltd, with Pan India Infraprojects Pvt Ltd as co-borrower. It was described as a home-entity loan for takeover, top-up, and business expansion. Chandra provided a continuing guarantee letter on March 28, 2018. That same day, DIM & Co issued a certificate stating his net worth was about $6,197.62 million, or Rs 59,113.21 crore, as of March 31, 2017.
The second loan of Rs 480 crore went to Digital Subscriber Management and Consultancy Services Pvt Ltd, with Spirit Infrapower and Multiventures Pvt Ltd as co-borrowers. This was a rental-discounting loan under a securitisation scheme. Chandra gave a continuing guarantee on August 10, 2018. MPJ & Co issued a second certificate on July 6, 2018, stating his net worth was Rs 40,562 crore. Both accounts later became irregular.
The main issue in the FIR is what happened next. During personal insolvency proceedings under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC), Chandra denied the figures in those certificates. He said his net worth in 2024 was Rs 31.79 crore and that even in 2017-18, it had not exceeded Rs 40,000 crore. LICHFL sees the difference between the 2018 documents and Chandra’s later statements as proof that the certificates were inflated to get the loans. The complaint claims Chandra worked with the four borrower and co-borrower companies and their officers to cheat the lender.
The FIR names Chandra, Vasant Sagar Properties and its director Pankaj Suroliya, Pan India Infraprojects, Digital Subscriber Management and Consultancy Services and its director Amish Pandya, Spirit Infrapower and Multiventures and its director Rajeev Dholakia, and others not yet identified. Creating false documents to inflate net worth, inducing LICHFL to advance funds, and then misappropriating those funds.
The claimed loss of over Rs 1,322 crore is not the original principal. LICHFL’s admitted claim in Chandra’s personal insolvency is about Rs 1,322.39 crore, reflecting outstanding dues with interest and charges after default. That insolvency itself has been contentious. Creditors have opposed a repayment plan that would recover only a few crore against admitted claims running into tens of thousands of crore.
The CBI case now adds a criminal investigation to the ongoing civil dispute over the loans. Investigators will look into the roles of the two chartered accountancy firms, how LICHFL assessed the loans, how the funds were used, and whether public money was put at risk due to misleading information.
Chandra and the other accused did not comment right away. This case adds a criminal angle to the ongoing financial troubles of the Essel group’s founder. His personal guarantees once backed large loans, and his later statements during insolvency hearings are now central to the CBI investigation.
