Yes Bank Scam: Rana Kapoor’s daughter can’t travel abroad orders special court

A special court has refused to suspend a Look Out Circular (LOC) pending against former MD and CEO of Yes Bank Rana Kapoor’s daughter, Roshini Kapoor, and permit her to travel to the USA to visit her relatives, observing that she is facing trial with grave accusations of her and her family members being ultimate beneficiaries of Rs 600 crore.

Kapoor had sought to travel to visit Rana Kapoor’s sister and her cousins, who live in the US and said that she wants to reestablish family ties as she could not attend her cousin’s wedding last year. Her advocate relied on a Delhi High Court judgment and said that to re-establish family ties is an essential ground to visit abroad.

Special Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) Judge SU Wadgaonkar said in the order that her ground is not an essential and extraordinary one to allow her to go abroad considering the accusations against her.The court further noted that the investigation is still in progress in the matter.

Her advocate had also argued that Kapoor had been granted bail by the apex court and hence was not a flight risk. The special court said releasing her on bail itself is not sufficient to permit her to go abroad. The CBI had opposed her plea and argued that not sufficient justification was given by Kapoor to suspend the LOC. The agency told the court that it is a common experience that white-collar offenders leave the country after taking permission to travel abroad and then settle there, making it difficult to secure their presence (for trial).

The agency had sought to reject the application. As per the CBI’s case, Yes Bank had invested in short-term debentures of R 3,700 crore of Dewan Housing Finance Corporation Ltd (DHFL)in exchange for a kickback of Rs 600 crore to Rana Kapoor that he received through firms linked with his family members. The agency alleged that DHFL had paid the kickback in the form of a builder loan to DoIT Urban Ventures PvtLtd,asubsidiary of a firm in which Kapoor’s wife Bindu is a director.