Former Fortis promoter Shivinder Singh gets bail in Religare money laundering case
Singh was accused of cheating and diverting funds of Religare Finvest Limited.
The Delhi High Court on Thursday granted bail to former Fortis Healthcare promoter Shivinder Mohan Singh in a money laundering case, PTI reported. He was accused of cheating and diverting funds of Religare Finvest Limited to the tune of Rs 2,397 crore.
Justice Anup Jairam Bhambhani granted Singh bail on furnishing a personal bond of Rs 1 crore and two sureties by family members of Rs 25 lakh each.
Bhambhani also ordered the Enforcement Directorate, which is investigating the case, to ask the Bureau of Immigration to open a Lookout Circular against Singh to prevent him from leaving the country. Singh must not tamper with the evidence in the case or attempt to influence witnesses, the court added.
Shivinder Singh, along with his brother Malvinder Singh, were arrested along with three others by the Economic Offences Wing of the Delhi Police in November for alleged diversion of funds. Religare Finvest is a subsidiary of Religare Enterprises Limited.
The Economic Offences Wing had filed the first information report in March on a complaint lodged by Manpreet Singh Suri of Religare Finvest Ltd, alleging cheating and misappropriation. Kavi Arora and Anil Saxena, who also occupied important positions in REL and RFL, were also arrested for allegedly diverting money.
Religare Finvest has claimed that loans were taken by Shivinder Singh while managing the firm, but the money was invested in other companies.
The Singh brothers resigned from the board of Fortis Healthcare in February 2018, following a court order in another case involving Japanese firm Daiichi Sankyo.
Daiichi Sankyo last year filed a contempt of court petition against the brothers and accused them of disposing of their assets in violation of a court order putting on hold the acquisition of controlling stake in Fortis Healthcare by Malaysian firm IHH Healthcare. On November 15 last year, the Supreme Court held the Singh brothers as well as Fortis Healthcare guilty of contempt, and said the brothers could “purge” contempt by depositing Rs 1,175 crore each.