A Special Court for CBI cases has convicted three individuals, including two former managers of Central Bank of India, for facilitating the late film producer G. Venkateshwaran of G.V. Films to obtain loans by submitting false and fabricated book debts as securities, causing a loss of over ₹10 crore. The offence was committed by the accused more than three decades ago.
Before the trial commenced, the main accused, A1 Venkateshwaran, had died. G. Venkateshwaran, popularly known as G.V., was a chartered accountant and the brother of filmmaker Mani Ratnam. He also produced popular films, including Thalapathi (starring Rajinikanth and Mammootty), Anjali, and Thamizhan (starring Vijay and Priyanka Chopra).
According to the prosecution, R.R. Sharma, then Chief Vigilance Officer of Central Bank of India, Bombay, filed a written complaint on September 7, 1996, against G.V. and his wife Sujatha Venkateshwaran, as well as T.R. Venkataraman and S.R. Srinivasan — both of whom were formerly the manager and accountant (respectively) at the Central Bank of India, Nungambakkam Branch, Chennai. The complainant alleged that since 1987, A1 Venkateshwaran had availed of ‘Overdraft’ and ‘Term Loan’ facilities in the name of M/s Sujatha Films and M/s C.V. Films by submitting false and fabricated book debts as securities.
The complainant alleged that A3 Venkataraman and A4 Srinivasan, as manager and accountant of the branch, had allowed the borrowers to avail themselves of credit facilities beyond their sanction limit and in excess of the securities offered. This facilitated the borrowers in engaging in kite-flying operations and diverting the loan proceeds for unrelated purposes, which ultimately led to financial losses of ₹10.54 crore and ₹3.39 crore in the accounts of M/s C.V. Films and M/s Sujatha Films, respectively.
Based on this complaint, G.M. Reddy, then Superintendent of Police at the CBI Bank Security and Fraud Cell in Bangalore, registered an FIR on October 31, 1996. The investigation was carried out from October 1996 to November 1999. The final report, after completing the investigation, was filed on December 18, 2000, against nine accused, excluding Sujatha Venkateshwaran.
Venkateshwaran died by suicide in 2003, before the charges were framed. Charges were framed against four individuals: T.R. Venkataraman and P. Swaminathan, then branch managers, K. Srinivasan, a private individual, and G.V. Films.
Pronouncing the verdict in the case, XI Additional Special Judge (CBI Cases Relating to Banks & Financial Institutions) T.P. Vadivelu convicted the accused for offences cited by the CBI under the provisions of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and the Prevention of Corruption Act.
The court sentenced Venkataraman and Swaminathan to nine years of rigorous imprisonment and imposed a fine of ₹45,000 each. The private individual, K. Srinivasan, was sentenced to six years of rigorous imprisonment, along with a fine of ₹20,000. The charges against Venkateshwaran abated since he had passed away. S.R. Srinivasan, then accountant, also passed away during the course of the trial.
G.V. Films Ltd, represented by A.H. Abdul Hameed, was sentenced for conspiracy and cheating and fined ₹50,000. In the event of non-payment, A.H. Abdul Hameed, the representative of the company, will undergo six months of simple imprisonment.
(Assistance for overcoming suicidal thoughts is available on the State’s health helpline 104, Tele-MANAS 14416. and Sneha’s suicide prevention helpline 044-24640050)
Published – August 28, 2025 01:19 pm IST
