Relief for PMC Bank depositors as RBI directs EoW to release attached assets for auction

MUMBAI: In a big relief for thousands of scam-hit Punjab & Maharashtra Cooperative (PMC) Bank depositors, the Reserve Bank of India-appointed administrator has direcetd the Economic Offences Wing (EoW) to sell properties attached in connection with the case so that they can be auctioned.

According to reports, the RBI move is likely to provide huge relief to aggrieved account holders.

The Mumbai Police will now seek the court's approval to hand over the assets to the RBI administrator.

According to sources, the Mumbai Police will approach the competent court by the end of this week to release all provisionally attached movable and immovable property, estimated to be worth over Rs 3,500 crore.

The Wadhawans – the key accused in the multi-crore PMC Bank scam case - have given their consent for auction

“If auctioned, the proceeds of the sale could be infused in the bank and distributed among the depositors on a pro-rata basis,” a senior official with knowledge of the matter was quoted as saying.

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The RBI has placed the PMC Bank under restrictions after a Rs 4,355-crore scam surfaced and capped withdrawals by account holders.

Authorities are probing the alleged criminal conspiracy between some officials of PMC Bank and Housing Development Infrastructure Ltd promoters Rakesh and Sarang Wadhawan.

Meanwhile, a 68-year-old woman, an account holder of the scam-hit Punjab and Maharashtra (PMC) Bank allegedly died of a heart attack on Wednesday.

Keshumal Hinduja, a resident of Mulund colony, complained of chest pain on the night of October 29 and she died of a cardiac arrest in a private hospital on October 30, the daughter the deceased said.

The daughter has further stated that her mother, who ran a Kirana shop in the area, was not suffering from any ailment but she was in stress after the PMC bank scam surfaced.

The amount of money in Keshumal Hinduja`s bank account is not known so far.

Several people, having accounts in the PMC Bank, have died in Mumbai earlier this month. 

(With Agency inputs)