The Serious Fraud Investigation Office (SFIO) has launched a probe into the affairs of Infrastructure Leasing & Financial Services Limited (IL&FS), faced with a consolidated debt of about ₹91,000 crore and serious liquidity crunch.
According to a government source, the Ministry of Corporate Affairs has issued directions to the SFIO to conduct investigations into all the financial dealings of the infrastructure, finance and construction company to determine whether any malpractice was involved at any level.
The crisis unfolded about a month ago when the company defaulted on a short-term loan from the Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI). The LIC is the largest shareholder in the company with 25.34% stake. The SFIO probe follows the cascading effect of the crisis.
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