Krishna Damani, administrator and treasurer of South Point School and South Point High School, was sent to police custody for 10 days on Friday.
The chief metropolitan magistrate said there was prima facie evidence that suggested Damani’s complicity in the alleged case, because of which his bail prayer was rejected.
“The statement of account of Pastille Mercantiles Pvt. Ltd, which shows huge amount of money trail where the name of the accused has prima facie come. Perused the statement of accused, recorded under Section 161 of CrPC, and statements of several witnesses recorded under Section 161 of CrPC. Perused the statement of witnesses recorded under Section 164 of CrPC.... There appears to be prima facie involvement of this accused person, for which thorough investigation is desirable and the same is very much required to unearth the actual truth. Considering the gravity of offence and the primary stage of investigation, prayer for bail is rejected,” the court ordered on Friday.
Moving the bail prayer, defence lawyer Sabyasachi Banerjee said Damani was “innocent” and his arrest was “illegal”. Banerjee submitted that his client had not been produced in court within 24 hours of being picked up by the police.
The court overruled the appeal and rejected the bail prayer.
The police on Friday submitted before the court that it had emerged during their investigation that a company named Global Staffing Services (a division of Pastille Mercantile Private Limited) had received around Rs 8.45 crore from the South Point Education Society (SPES) between April 2020 and June 2023.
“A sum of Rs 2.67 crore was further allegedly distributed to different family members of Damani and his entire family in the form of directors’ commission and salary,” the police said.
The police also submitted that based on Damani’s statements following his arrest on Thursday, search operations were conducted across the city and in several offices of the “accounts storage facilities of South Point School and South Point High School”.
“Voluminous documents have been seized but several documents could not be perused because of paucity of time. So addresses where the documents were found have been locked,” a police officer said.
According to a preliminary inquiry, the police said, Global Staffing Services had been engaged by the SPES (which is under the MP Birla Group) to supply personnel.
“A preliminary investigation suggested that Global Staffing Services, which is part of a company owned by Damani’s family members, had been providing personnel at inflated rates,” said an officer at Hare Street police station, which is investigating the case.
Damani has been charged under IPC sections related to criminal breach of trust; criminal breach of trust by clerk or servant; criminal breach of trust by public servant or by banker, merchant or agent; cheating and dishonestly inducing delivery of property; forgery of valuable security; falsification of accounts, and criminal conspiracy.
The complaint based on which Damani was arrested mentions three others as accused.
A statement issued by the MP Birla Group on Friday said: “Mr Krishna Damani, Treasurer and Secretary of South Point High School and a Trustee of South Point Education Society, was on Friday remanded in police custody till 19 February 2024 following his arrest on 8 February 2024 in connection with a criminal complaint of misappropriation of funds from the School…. An authorised representative of Mr. Harsh Vardhan Lodha, Chairman of the MP Birla Group and a Trustee of the South Point Education Society, had filed the criminal complaint in the interest of the Schools and the South Point Education Society, which are run as non-profits, after a threadbare investigation revealed systemic embezzlement of funds in the guise of teacher recruitment.”
The statement, signed by B. Matilal, trustee, South Point Education Society, also said: “The MP Birla Group firmly stands beside the South Point School and South Point High School and assures all stakeholders that operations of the institutions will not be disrupted by the rogue actions of a handful of key executives and the ongoing investigation.”