CBI officer investigating Kochhar case transferred under mysterious circumstances

The CBI has transferred the investigating officer in the ICICI Bank case as its "discreet inquiry" suggested his role in leaking information related to searches, officials said Sunday. 

Superintendent of Police Sudhanshu Dhar Mishra was transferred to Ranchi, a day after filing the FIR in the case against former ICICI CEO Chanda Kochhar, her husband Deepak and Videocon group MD Venugopal Dhoot on January 22, they said. 

The agency had carried out searches at multiple locations after the charge of the case was given to new Investigating officer Mohit Gupta, they said.

Justifying the transfer, the CBI pinned the blame on Mishra for keeping the preliminary enquiry pending without any reasons, they said. An investigation has been launched against him on January 22, 2019.  

The officials said after review some time ago, the PE wad sped up and was converted into a regular case.  Immediately after the registration of the case, the searches were proposed, they said. 

However, it was suspected that there was a possibility of information regarding searches being leaked, the officials claimed. 

"A discreet inquiry was conducted and the role of Sudhanshu Dhar Mishra was strongly suspected. Hence he has been transferred pending detailed inquiry in the matter, being serious," they said. 

The CBI filing the case against the Kochhars and Videocon Venugopal Dhoot drew criticisms from many politicians, including Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley who called it 'investigative adventurism'.  

The Kochhars and Dhoot came under the CBI's radar after they procured a large sum of money as a loan for the Videocon group. The CBI alleged that they got the loan though many irregularities and pumped it into a firm owned by Dipak Kochhar.