Tarun Karthick
Sri Vijaya Puram, 01 August 2025
The Directorate of Enforcement (ED) has conducted its first-ever search operation in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands as part of an investigation into alleged financial irregularities involving the Andaman and Nicobar State Cooperative Bank (ANSCB).
The search operations were carried out on July 31, 2025, at nine locations in and around Port Blair and two locations in Kolkata. According to official Press Release, searches at 10 additional locations across the islands are currently underway, focusing on suspected shell companies and others identified during the initial phase of the operation.
The investigation was initiated based on a First Information Report (FIR) registered by the Crime and Economic Offences Police Station of the Andaman and Nicobar Police. The FIR named several private individuals and bank officials in connection with the alleged fraud.
During the searches, the ED claims to have recovered several incriminating documents, which reportedly point to large-scale irregularities in the sanctioning of loans and overdraft facilities by the cooperative bank. Officials allege that loan facilities were extended through more than 100 accounts in the names of various firms and shell companies, in violation of the bank’s standard procedures and guidelines.
Property documents worth approximately ₹100 crore were also reportedly recovered during the operation.
According to the ED, preliminary findings suggest that multiple shell companies were established by former Member of Parliament Mr. Kuldeep Rai Sharma and his associates. These entities are alleged to have secured loans exceeding ₹500 crore from the ANSCB, which were subsequently diverted and siphoned off. The agency further claims that a substantial portion of the loaned amounts were withdrawn in cash and disbursed as kickbacks to senior bank officials including Mr. Kuldeep Rai Sharma, who was until recently serving as the Vice-Chairman of the bank. (Story Based on PR by ED)
