Corporation Bank says no loan given to Vadra for land deals

Kochi (Kerala) - The state-owned Corporation Bank has reiterated that it did not provide any loan to Robert Vadra, the son-in-law of Congress Party president Sonia Gandhi for his land deals with realtor DLF.

The Chairman-cum-Managing Director of the bank, Ajai Kumar, told media persons here that no loan was extended to Vadra’s company and it was some accounting malpractice that has dragged the name of his bank in the whole issue.

“I can vouch for my bank. In our bank, we have not extended. Yes sir, I have been so many times, wherever I go, same thing I have to repeat,” said Kumar.

It had been alleged that Vadra had availed huge loans from Corporation Bank for the controversial land deals with realty major DLF Limited in Gurgaon.

Vadra’s firm Sky Light Hospitality, in its annual report for 2007-08, claimed that it got an overdraft of Rs.7.94 crore (nearly 80 million) from Corporation Bank.

Kumar said: “There is no controversy. If you understand, these are, as somebody have themselves published in the newspaper, some accounting practices, which are prevalent that have been followed. But I cannot comment on somebody else’s wrongdoing.”

Earlier, citing a court judgment, anti-graft activist Arvind Kejriwal and his colleagues under the banner of India Against Corruption (IAC) had alleged that there was nexus between Congress-ruled Haryana Government, Vadra and DLF, the country's biggest real estate developer.

Kejriwal also accused Vadra of availing Rs.85 crores as unsecured loan from DLF and he used the fund to buy properties owned by the same firm well below the market price.