Booked for fraud & cheating: Ex-Congress MLC’s son Aditya Malhotra arrested by Chhattisgarh Police in Jammu
STATE TIMES NEWS
JAMMU: In a major development, Aditya Malhotra, son of former MLC Amrit Malhotra and brother of presently BJP leader Vikram Malhotra, has been arrested by a special team of Chhattisgarh Police from Jammu on Friday evening. Sources confirmed that Aditya has been taken into custody in connection with a fraud case reportedly related to the supply of solar panels and booked under sections of criminal breach of trust.
Following his arrest, Aditya was lodged in Sainik Colony Police Post in Jammu and is likely to be shifted to Chhattisgarh on transit remand tomorrow. Officials revealed that the arrest comes after sustained investigation into alleged fraudulent business dealings in Chhattisgarh, where Aditya Malhotra has been accused of duping parties in solar panel contracts.
This is not the first time Aditya Malhotra’s name has surfaced in financial irregularities. The Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) Jammu had, in 2022, registered a case against Aditya, his elder brother Vikram Malhotra, and J&K Bank officials for causing a loss of Rs 5 crore to the J&K Bank.
According to FIR 12/2022, the ACB found that a term loan of Rs 5 crore had been sanctioned in July 2013 in favour of M/S A3 Infrastructure Pvt. Ltd., a company promoted by the Malhotra brothers. The loan, meant for constructing a 10,000 MT capacity warehousing project at Sehora, Jammu, was disbursed in violation of banking rules and pre-disbursement conditions by J&K Bank officials led by then branch head Anoop Bhat.
The investigation revealed that the sanctioned amount was diverted to accounts linked to the Malhotras, with significant sums withdrawn in cash through a sister concern firm M/S Ann Account. Despite the funds being fully disbursed, no warehouse construction was ever undertaken, leading to the cancellation of the Food Corporation of India (FCI) contract and turning the account into a Non-Performing Asset (NPA). This resulted in a direct financial loss of ?5 crore to the J&K Bank.
Aditya’s elder brother, Vikram Malhotra, has a fluctuating political career. Once Secretary of Jammu and Kashmir Pradesh Congress Committee, Vikram later joined the Apni Party in June 2020 and resigned in 2022. Presently, he has joined BJP.
With the latest arrest in Chhattisgarh’s fraud case, questions are once again being raised about the financial dealings of the Malhotra brothers. Sources in the investigating agencies have hinted that Aditya’s criminal record-including the ongoing ACB case-will be factored into the proceedings once he is moved to Chhattisgarh.
Legal experts believe the fresh charges could compound Aditya’s troubles, especially given his pending corruption case in Jammu.
As of now, the Chhattisgarh Police are preparing the necessary paperwork to secure Aditya Malhotra’s transit remand from Court for shifting him to Raipur, where the present case is being investigated.
