Tribunal Confirms ED’s Seizure Of Chanda Kochhar’s Assets In Loan Case

Last Updated:July 20, 2025, 14:48 IST

The Appellate Tribunal under SAFEMA upheld the ED’s decision to seize former ICICI Bank CEO Chanda Kochhar’s assets, including a prime flat in Mumbai.

Chanda Kochhar Loan Case: In a significant development for former ICICI Bank CEO Chanda Kochhar, the Appellate Tribunal under SAFEMA has upheld the Enforcement Directorate’s (ED) decision to seize her assets. The Tribunal confirmed that a Rs 64 crore payment connected to a Rs 300 crore loan to Videocon was illicit.

This decision reverses a previous ruling, enabling the ED to confiscate Kochhar’s properties, including a prime flat in Churchgate, Mumbai, labelling them as “proceeds of crime.”

Kochhar was found guilty of approving loans while hiding a serious conflict of interest, and the Tribunal criticised her for gross misconduct.

The flat was discovered to have been transferred through a network of Videocon-related companies to Kochhar’s family trust at an undervalued price of Rs 11 lakh.

Of the seized assets, only Rs 10.5 lakh in cash was returned to Kochhar after she provided records tracing its origin.

Chandra Kochar Fraud Case

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) had filed an extensive chargesheet of over 11,000 pages. Kochhar, her husband Deepak, and V N Dhoot, the promoter of Videocon Group, are among those mentioned in the chargesheet. The case primarily focuses on accusations of cheating and misconduct related to the sanctioning of loans to companies associated with the Videocon Group.

CBI alleges that Chanda Kochhar and others conspired to approve credit facilities for Videocon Group companies. In August 2009, a committee led by Kochhar sanctioned a Rs 300 crore term loan to Videocon International Electronics Limited. The loan was disbursed through a complex network involving multiple Videocon entities, and Rs 64 crore was transferred to Deepak Kochhar’s NuPower Renewable Limited as an investment.

In a case registered in January 2019, CBI alleged that Chanda Kochhar, during her tenure as MD and CEO of the bank, approved loans of Rs 1,875 crore to six firms. Later, the loan amount was restructured to Rs 1,730 crore, with a balance of Rs 1,033 crore remaining. Notably, two loans of Rs 300 crore and Rs 750 crore were granted to Videocon International Electronics and Videocon Industries.

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