DPIL Bank Scam: The Curious Case of BJP Sympathiser Amit Bhatnagar

What connections does DPIL’s Managing Director Amit Bhatnagar have with big wigs in the BJP?

Amit Bhatnagar (right) with PM Narendra Modi (left) and BJP leader Saurabh Patel (centre).

(Photo Courtesy: Amit Bhatnagar/Facebook)

Last week on Thursday, 5 April, the CBI lodged an FIR in Gandhinagar, Gujarat, against Vadodara-based company Diamond Power Infrastructure Ltd. (DPIL) and its directors for allegedly duping 11 banks to the tune of Rs 2,654 crore.

The consortium sanctioned credit limits to DPIL, albeit they were mentioned in the Reserve Bank of India's defaulters list and Export Credit Guarantee Corporation (ECGC) caution list, .

The Congress has alleged links between the company’s owners Suresh Bhatnagar, his sons Amit Bhatnagar, Sumit Bhatnagar, and the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party in Gujarat. According to the Congress, it was this nexus that helped the Bhatnagars secure loans despite being on the defaulters list.

Amit Bhatnagar’s Turn as Event Manager

Amit Bhatnagar, the Managing Director of DPIL and one of the co-accused in the case, seems to have a good equation with powerful leaders in the ruling BJP. Bhatnagar debuted in the public domain in 2011, when he organised the Vadodara Marathon, which was inaugurated by the then Chief Minister of Gujarat, Narendra Modi. The marathon is listed as a Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) initiative by DPIL on its official website.

According to Narendra Rawat, the General Secretary of the Congress in Vadodara, Bhatnagar was instrumental in campaigning for the BJP in the 2014 general elections, “The local administration in Vadodara had organised ‘Vote for Vadodara’ to encourage citizens to vote during the 2014 general elections and it was managed by Amit Bhatnagar who used it as a tool to campaign for the BJP”, Rawat told The Quint.

After Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan, Bhatnagar was appointed the brand ambassador for the programme from Vadodara.

From Cultural Fests to Business Expos

Soon after, Bhatnagar started organising major events in the city. It started with the VadFest held in January 2015. The event was said to be the brainchild of the then state tourism minister Saurabh Patel. Although Bhatnagar does not own an event management company, under his chairmanship the four-day event saw big celebrities and international artists performing in the city.

"The BJP government in the state showers public money on Amit Bhatnagar's cultural fest in Vadodara – VadFest. According to Bhatnagar's own admission, Rs 26 crore were spent on the first VadFest and a large proportion of it come from the BJP-ruled state government", Congress spokesperson Pawan Khera told IANS.

In 2016, Bhatnagar was at the helm of affairs when Vadodara hosted the five-day ‘Switch Global Expo’ in October, which saw prominent personalities from all fields such as sports, politics, films and even news media in attendance, and was inaugurated by the then Union Minister of Power Piyush Goyal.

Amit Bhatnagar with Railways Minister Piyush Goyal.(Photo Courtesy: Amit Bhatnagar/Facebook)

Saurabh Patel’s Social Media Manager

Bhatnagar’s Facebook profile is littered with photographs of him with prominent BJP leaders and ministers. Till 9 April (when this screenshot was taken), his profile even mentioned that he manages the official Facebook page of prominent BJP leader Saurabh Patel. However, that information has apparently been removed now. Bhatnagar is also a committee member of the Federation of Gujarat Industries (FGI), an ISO 9001:2015 certified organisation.

Amit Bhatnagar’s Facebook profile mentions that he manages BJP leader Saurabh Patel’s official Facebook page.(Photo Courtesy: Amit Bhatnagar/Facebook)

Two months after the VadFest 2015 concluded, Bhatnagar was arrested by central excise department in March for evading Rs 42 crore excise duty. According to excise officials, DPIL showed faked purchase of goods to gain excise benefits.

According to the excise department Bhatnagar was arrested under section 91 (a) of the Central Excise Act for fraudulent misuse of CenVAT credit. The court had granted him bail on the same day after Bhatnagar promised to pay up.

Court Rejects Bhatnagar’s Anticipatory Bail Plea

On Tuesday, 10 April, a special CBI court rejected Bhatnagar’s anticipatory bail plea. This came a day after the Enforcement Directorate conducted raids on DPIL’s corporate office, factory premises and the residences of the directors of the firm.

The ED has registered a money laundering case against the company based on the FIR filed by the CBI.

DPIL has been charged with fraudulently availing credit facilities from a consortium of 11 banks by submitting false stock statements and extensively utilising cash credit limits for obtaining large number of Letters of Credit (LCs).