Malvinder Singh, the former CEO and chairman of Ranbaxy Laboratories, and his younger brother Shivinder Singh set up two offshore firms in the British Virgin Islands in January 2009, just six months after the family sold its 34.8 percent stake in the company to Japanese pharma company Daiichi Sankyo for around $2.4 billion, The Indian Express reported on Friday, 8 October.
Investigating the Pandora Papers, the daily said that Clonberg Holdings Ltd and Forthill International Ltd, the two offshore firms, owned an apartment each in London. Some properties of Forthill International Ltd were also mortgaged by Shivinder to borrow £5.1 million from Barclays Bank.
Both the brothers are currently in Tihar jail for two years for money laundering and illegal diversion of funds.
On 2 January 2009, Clonberg Holdings and Forthill International were registered in the British Virgin Islands through "Aleman, Cordero, Galindo & Lee Trust (BVI) Limited". As of May 2018, Forthill had issued 48.5 lakh shares, while Clonberg had issued 44.5 lakh shares.
Clonberg Holdings' shareholders included Malvinder Singh, his wife Japna and their three daughters, while Shivinder Singh, his wife Aditi and their four children were shareholders of Forthill International.
Clonberg was initially authorised to issue only 50,000 shares but issued 44.5 lakh shares of $1 each. Meanwhile, Forthill's share capital was increased up to 48.5 lakh shares, reported The Indian Express.
Clonberg owned one apartment and three parking spaces at Embassy Court in London, with an approximate minimum current value of £7.4 million.
Forthill had an apartment, two storage and parking spaces in Embassy Court as well, which are approximately valued at £6.6 million.
In October 2019, the Economic Offences Wing had arrested the two brothers for allegedly causing losses close to Rs 2,397 crore to Religare Finvest Ltd, a subsidiary of Religare Enterprises Ltd.
Later on 12 December 2019, the Enforcement Directorate arrested Shivinder Singh and others in a money laundering case.
More About the Pandora Papers
‘Pandora Papers’, an investigation by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ), which includes 150 media outlets, including The Indian Express, claimed to have revealed financial secrets of the “rich, the famous and the notorious” from 91 countries.
At least 380 Indians have been named in the Pandora Papers. These individuals include Anil Ambani, Sachin Tendulkar, and Kiran Mazumdar Shaw among others. Sixty of these prominent individuals and companies have been verified and have had their documents corroborated.
(With inputs from The Indian Express)
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