Shares of Can Fin Homes on Monday came under pressure on reports that the RBI may probe detection of fraud in 37 accounts.

Though the company denied having received ‘any such information’ from the banking regulator, it said in a stock exchange filing that fake income tax returns (ITRs) have been found in 37 accounts.

On the BSE, Can Fin Homes, in which Canara Bank has a stake of almost 30 per cent, fell 4.67 per cent, or by Rs 25.45, to 520.05 on the news. It had slumped 14.50 per cent during intra-day trades to a low of 466.55 but recovered some of the losses after a clarification by the company.

The mortgage lender disclosed that the National Housing Bank (NHB), which is the regulator for housing finance companies, had forwarded a complaint it had received to its audit committee chairman.

As a prudent practice, the audit committee requested the Canara Bank inspection-team to verify the operations in 21 branches. While the inspection was completed during March 2022, it found fake ITRs in 37 accounts at the Bhilwara, Rajasthan, branch.

“The borrowers are available in all the accounts, securities provided by them intact and the accounts are maintained regular. However, submission of fake ITRs falls under the definition of ‘fraud' and hence all the 37 accounts were classified as fraud accounts and reported to the regulator,’’ Can Fin Homes said.