Thai police hands over Cosmic Air director to Nepali cops
KATHMANDU, JAN 26 -
Thailand Police has handed over Binita Pradhan, director of Cosmic Airlines and former Hyundai’s dealer Avco International, to the Nepal Police. Pradhan faces cheating charges in Nepal and India.
The Central Investigation Bureau (CIB) of Nepal Police on Wednesday took her under its control from the Tribhuvan International Airport. “We have begun further investigation,”
said Deputy Superintendent of Police Upendra Kanta Aryal, chief of the CIB.
Pradhan has been accused of fleecing Indian nationals and banks out of tens of millions of rupees. Her firm has been accused of not delivering cars after taking advance payments.
Thai Police had arrested Pradhan based on a red corner notice issued by the Interpol on January 5. The Indian police had asked the Interpol to issue the notice. According to Interpol’s website, she figures on the wanted list of the Indian Police for fraud and forgery.
In India, Pradhan faces charges including criminal conspiracy, cheating, criminal breach of trust and forgery for the purpose of cheating, according to CIB sources.
Pradhan, along with her team, had registered a company in India as the authorised dealer of Hyundai vehicles. She was the promoter and director of the company. During the course, she fleeced a sum of IRs 120.18 million from State Bank of India (SBI) and its branches abroad. During 2007-09, the company also cheated an additional Rs 130 million from SBI as overdraft loan. The bank had charged her with loan misappropriation.
According to the CIB source, the Indian Police is also on the hunt for her four accomplices—Sanjaya Pradhan, who is said to be her husband, Anup Pradhan, Dhiren Tamang and Madhawi Joshi. Both the Indian and Nepali Police are not informed of the status of these persons.
“Once these charges are proved, Pradhan might be sent to jail for seven years,” said a CIB official.
The CBI source also said several complaints have been lodged against Pradhan and her firm Avco since last year for cheating over 167 clients of over Rs 50 million.
Machhapuchhre Bank has blacklisted Avco for defaulting loans taken to import vehicles and Hyundai has also cancelled its dealership.
The problem began after Cosmic Airlines went bankrupt as a result of offering tickets at far lower prices than it could have afforded. The move was aimed at competing with other private airlines such as Buddha Air and Yeti Airlines, but it could not be sustainable and increased its liabilities to the bank, the government and airports. The liabilities are yet to be cleared.
Source: Kantipur
