The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Wednesday conducted its first-ever raids in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands in connection with an alleged loan scam at the Andaman Nicobar State Cooperative Bank (ANSCB). Searches were carried out at nine locations in and around Port Blair and two in Kolkata.

The raids, conducted on July 31, were part of an ongoing probe into alleged irregularities in the disbursal of loans and overdraft facilities by the bank. During the search operations, the ED said it recovered several documents indicating “serious irregularities” in the manner loans were sanctioned.

The agency said, “Around 15 entities/companies were created by suspects for the benefit of Shri Kuldeep Rai Sharma, Ex-(Congress) MP of Andaman & Nicobar Islands, and loan facilities amounting to more than Rs 200 crore were fraudulently taken by these entities from the ANSCB. It is worth mentioning here that (Sharma) is also the Vice-Chairman of the Andaman Nicobar State Cooperative Bank.”

According to the ED, loans were allegedly granted to shell firms and front companies “bypassing due diligence and internal banking procedures.” The probe is based on an FIR lodged by the Crime and Economic Offences Wing of the Andaman and Nicobar Police against multiple private individuals and bank officials allegedly linked to the scam.