CPM demands CBI inquiry into IMFA's loan write off case

Bhubaneswar, Oct 11(UNI) The Orissa unit of the CPM today demanded a CBI inquiry into the waiver of more than Rs 2,300 crore loan to Indian Metals and Ferro Alloys Limited (IMFA), owned by a business family from the state, in the garb of one-time settlement schemes (OTS) by a cartel of nationalised banks and financial institutions.

The CPM, which staged a demonstration here against the waiving of huge money to IMFA, submitted a memorandum addressed to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, urging him to constitute a Parliamentary Committee to inquire into the case.

Party State Committee Secretary Janardan Pati said loans amounting to more than Rs 2,300 crore had been waived in favour of IMFA, a flagship corporation owned by a renowned business family of the state, and demanded strong action against the individuals involved in the deal and recover the amount from them.

Mr Pati said the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) should ensure that in future, no individual or institution with vested interests should misuse the legal framework to favour any company at the behest of power brokers in the name of OTS scheme for which there was no codified principle till date.

The memorandum alleged that under the OTS scheme, nearly 90 per cent of the loan had been waived, making a mockery of the Debt Recovery laws.

It alleged that the waiver had been granted in view of the merger of Indian Charge Chrome Limited (ICCL) of the same family with the IMFA to grant unscrupulous favours to the family while thousands of farmers were committing suicide all over the country due to the draconian debt recovery policies of the same financial institutions.

The memorandum also alleged that these two companies had been playing around with the laws for more than 18 years with the help of some individuals with vested interests and cheating the state exchequer of crores of rupees through various designs.

The party alleged that the state Finance Ministry was responsible for the plunder of money and demanded CBI inquiry into the whole episode.

UNI