Hero MotoCorp's Stock Tumbles After Delhi Police Files FIR Against Pawan Munjal

An FIR has been registered by the Delhi Police against Pawan Munjal, Executive Chairman of Hero MotoCorp, along with four others.

The accused parties are Hero MotoCorp, Pawan Munjal, Vikram Kasbekar, Hari Gupta, and Manjula Banerji,according to a CNBC TV-18 report.

Banerji was an auditor for the company in 2009 and 2010 and is identified as a partner in Deloitte Haskens & Sells. The complainant, Brains Logistics, alleges that the accused parties colluded to falsify the books and manufacture fake bills totaling Rs 5,94,52,525 or approx Rs 5.95 crore, for 2009 and 2010.

They claim that their contract with Hero MotoCorp ended on March 31, 2009, and all bills claiming debits post that date are false.

The news has led to stock to tumble by 2.72 per cent as it was trading at Rs 2,955.35 at the time of filing.

The FIR comes days after the Enforcement Directorate (ED) had conducted searches related to a money laundering investigation involving Pawan Munjal and others in August.

The raids were conducted at the bilionaire's homes and business entities in Gurugram and Delhi. The reason was a case registered against him under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).

The ED case began when the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI), a branch of the Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC), filed a complaint against Munjal.

Customs authorities apprehended the executive based on information from the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF).

On August 20, 2018, just before the executive and Munjal were to board a British Airways flight to London from the Delhi international airport, CISF discovered foreign currency exceeding ₹81 lakh in his hand baggage during security checks. The Customs seized this currency under foreign exchange management laws, and the case is still ongoing.