Trust managing Lilavati Hospital says Rs 1,500crore misappropriated by ex-trustees; FIRs filed
Mumbai, Mar 11 (PTI): The charitable trust that runs Mumbai's well-known Lilavati Hospital on Tuesday alleged that funds to the tune of over Rs 1,500 crore were misappropriated by its former trustees and other related individuals.
The Lilavati Kirtilal Mehta Medical Trust (LKMMT) has lodged separate complaints with the Enforcement Directorate (ED) and at the Bandra Police Station in this regard. It has also claimed black magic was performed in the hospital premises by erstwhile trustees and related individuals.
The complaints allege the misappropriation, uncovered during a forensic audit of Lilavati Hospital's financial records, has impacted the trust's operations and healthcare services provided by the leading private medical facility located in upscale Bandra area.
"We filed complaints which translated into FIRs due to the orders of the Bandra Magistrate Court. More than three FIRs have been filed against the former trustees and other related individuals. A fourth proceeding against these individuals is now pending before the Learned Magistrate which is based on our complaint filed in the Bandra Police Station for black magic and occult practices," LKMMT Permanent Resident Trustee Prashant Mehta told reporters.
The Bandra Magistrate Court has ordered an inquiry against these very individuals, he added.
"We are committed to upholding the integrity of the Lilavati Kirtilal Mehta Medical Trust and ensuring that funds meant for healthcare services are used solely for the benefit of patients who rely on us daily.
"The gross misconduct and financial misappropriation uncovered during forensic audit is not just a betrayal of the trust placed in the alleged and fraudulent former trustees, but a direct threat to the very mission of our hospital," Mehta maintained.
He said LKMMT will ensure that every individual involved in these illegal activities is held accountable.
"We request the Enforcement Directorate to take swift and decisive action in investigating these financial crimes under the provisions of the PMLA (Prevention of Money Laundering Act)," he stated.
After receiving control of the trust after a long legal battle, the present trustees allegedly identified large-scale irregularities in the affairs of the hospital management body by their predecessors and decided to conduct a forensic audit. Chetan Dalal Investigation and Management Services (CDIMS), and ADB and Associates were appointed as forensic auditors.
The auditors found large-scale irregularities, manipulation, siphoning of funds in the affairs of LKMMT by its erstwhile trustees, Mehta claimed.
"We undertook audits and the forensic auditors have come up with more than five reports, which clearly states that more than Rs 1,500 crore has been siphoned and misappropriated by this illegal group of trustees. This money has been siphoned off by former trustees most of whom are NRIs and residents of Dubai and Belgium," he alleged.
On the basis of the findings of the forensic audit, the current trustee filed three complaints at the Bandra Police Station alleging forgery and misappropriation of funds. After registration of FIRs, the case was transferred to the Economic Offences Wing (EOW) which is carrying out an investigation.
Further, the third FIR at the Bandra Police Station alleged that Rs 1,200 crore was misappropriated by indulging into illegalities with third-party distributors in respect of procurements for the hospital.
In addition to these FIRs, Mehta said another case is under investigation in Gujarat in respect to theft of valuables from Lilavati Hospital's facility in the adjoining state.
Speaking about black magic rituals performed in the hospital premises, he said "We have discovered more than seven urns with human hair and skulls."
Meanwhile, the Mumbai police's EOW has initiated a probe into an alleged cheating case of Rs 85 crore registered against three former trustees of the hospital, officials said on Tuesday.
The case, registered at the Bandra Police Station on December 30 last year on a complaint of the LKMMT, had been transferred to the EOW on orders of the magistrate's court, an official said.
The complaint was filed by one of the current trustees of the hospital after he found that between 2002 and 2023, the accused 'purported trustees' seized control of the trust by allegedly using fake documents, he said.
They unlawfully utilized Rs 85 crore for advocate fees for personal cases under the pretext of purchasing medical equipment and for personal expenses, the official said.
Based on the complaint, a case related to cheating and criminal breach of trust was registered at the Bandra Police Station, he said.
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PM unveils Rs 10,601-cr fertiliser plant in Assam, unit to be commissioned by 2030
Namrup (PTI): Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday laid the foundation stone of a Rs 10,601-crore brownfield ammonia-urea plant in Dibrugarh district of Assam.
The facility – Assam Valley Fertiliser and Chemical Company Ltd (AVFCCL) – will have an annual urea production capacity of 12.7 lakh metric tonnes and the project is scheduled for commissioning in 2030.
The PM, on the last day of his two-day Assam visit, laid the foundation stone of the plant here, located within the existing premises of the Brahmaputra Valley Fertiliser Corp Ltd (BVFCL).
In July this year, AVFCCL was incorporated at Namrup in Dibrugarh. The projectwas approved by the Union Cabinet in March this year.
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AVFCCL is a joint venture among the Assam government, Oil India, National Fertilisers Ltd (NFL), Hindustan Urvarak & Rasayan Ltd (HURL) and BVFCL.
Modi arrived in Assam on Saturday on a two-day visit, during which he unveiled multiple projects worth Rs 15,600 crore, months before the assembly polls next year.
"The AVFCCL Namrup ammonia-urea project is being established as a modern, energy-efficient, world-class fertiliser complex with an annual urea production capacity of 12.7 lakh metric tonnes, at an estimated investment of Rs 10,601 crore," the company said in a statement.
It said this upcoming facility will play a pivotal role in meeting the fertiliser requirement of Assam, the northeast region, West Bengal, Bihar, Jharkhand and eastern Uttar Pradesh.
"Beyond fertiliser security, the project is expected to act as a major catalyst for industrial growth, employment generation and regional economic development, creating hundreds of direct jobs and thousands of indirect employment opportunities," AVFCCL said.
The company also asserted that the foundation stone laying ceremony marked the revival of Namrup's legacy as the cradle of India's gas-based fertiliser industry, and will herald a new chapter of growth, sustainability and agricultural prosperity for the entire region.
The 'Bhoomi Poojan' took place in presence of Assam Governor Lakshman Prasad Acharya, Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma along with other ministers, MPs, MLAs, senior officials and representatives of stakeholder organisations of the new company.
The state-run BVFCL is the only urea-making facility in the eastern India. The facility started production in January 1969, as a part of the Hindustan Fertiliser Corp Ltd (HFCL).
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BVFCL was formed in April 2002 after hiving off the Namrup Unit of HFCL. It is under the administrative control of the Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilisers, with 100 per cent shareholding by the Government of India.
It is touted to be the first factory of its kind in India to use associated natural gas as basic raw material for producing nitrogenous fertiliser.
The company has played a crucial role in the development of the northeastern region and providing farmers urea fertiliser, which is produced from cheap and locally available domestic natural gas, officials said.
As per the official website of the Department of Fertilisers, the company is now producing neem-coated urea and two organic fertilisers – liquid bio fertiliser and vermi compost under the brand name of 'Mukta'.
BVFCL has two operable ammonia urea units at Namrup, with small capacities, which were established in 1976 and 1987.
