Calcutta High Court summons HSBC Bank management after lawyer alleges fraud and siphoning of funds

The Calcutta High Court on Friday directed the personal appearance of the HSBC Bank management in a case filed by a London-based lawyer of Indian origin claiming fraud and siphoning of funds [Orijit Das v HSBC]..Justice Ananya Bandyopadhyay passed the order in a case alleging that the bank's non-resident Indian (NRI) services induced him to open a bank account in Kolkata to help him transfer funds to his parents. It was claimed that the bank misused blank letters signed by the petitioner on their request by investing in loss-making funds, thus causing wrongful gain. "The learned Registrar Administration (L & OM) is directed to serve administrative notice upon the opposite parties to ensure their personal appearance before the court on the next date of hearing through the concerned police station," the order reads..Further, it was stated that the bank management also forged the petitioner's signature to sell mutual funds and that they siphoned the money into their own accounts through a fraudulent home loan agreement.HSBC was also accused of siphoning funds from his NRO account, contrary to his instructions."Huge amounts of money were removed from the bank account of the petitioner without his consent and when he asked for bank statement they refused / failed to provide any explanation for the same to the petitioner," the petitioner claimed..Even payments for lapsed insurance policies were continually deducted from the petitioner while the amount paid was siphoned, the plea claimed.The petitioner further alleged that the bank sent goons to his father's house and threatened him with physical violence, asking for further payments on a home loan..The petitioner had initially lodged a police complaint with the Shakespeare Sarani Police Station in July 2013. This was followed by a case before the Chief Metropolitan Magistrate (CMM).The case before the CMM was dismissed in December 2014, which resulted in the revision petition before the High Court on the ground that the order was erroneous and bereft of judicial reasoning."The Ld. Magistrate completely misdirected himself by dismissing the petition of complainant and throttling legitimate prosecution at its threshold without considering the extensive amount of evidence provided according an opportunity to produce the evidence in support of the claims and contentions of the petitioner," the plea stated..In its order passed on Friday, the High Court summoned HSBC represented through its erstwhile director and country head of India Naina Lal Kidwai, erstwhile global chairman Stuart T Gulliver, erstwhile Shakespeare Sarani branch head Clement Philip, and several other employees who acted as relationship managers for the petitioner's father..The case will be heard next on April 17..The petition was filed through Advocates Debangshu Ghatak and Partner at Ashlar Law, Souvik Bhadra..[Read Order]