- Indian Political Action Committee, IPAC, received Rs 13.5 crore loan from a struck-off Haryana firm in 2021
- The named lender, Ramasetu Infrastructure India (P) Limited, does not appear in official company records
- I-PAC's filings state that it received the loan in 2021, nearly three years after the company was dissolved
Political consultancy firm Indian Political Action Committee (I-PAC) has come under scrutiny following disclosures in its financial filings that it received an unsecured loan of Rs 13.5 crore in 2021 from a firm based in Haryana's Rohtak that, according to official public records, had ceased to exist years earlier.
In its financial disclosures, I-PAC named the lender as Ramasetu Infrastructure India (P) Limited. However, an examination of records from the Registrar of Companies, a central government authority, shows that no such entity appears in the official database. Incorporation documents are available only for a similarly named company, Ramsetu Infrastructure India Private Limited.
The story was first broken by The Indian Express.
According to corporate data aggregator Zauba Corp, Ramsetu Infrastructure India Private Limited was incorporated on December 18, 2013, as a non-government private company engaged in real estate activities, with an authorised share capital of Rs 5 lakh. The company had two directors - Vijendar and Vikram - both appointed on October 18, 2013.
Official records further show that the company was struck off under Section 248(1) of the Companies Act, 2013, on August 18, 2018. The strike-off indicates that the Registrar took action after the company failed to commence business or ceased operations for two consecutive financial years and did not meet statutory compliance requirements.
Despite this, I-PAC's filings state that it received the loan in 2021, nearly three years after the company was dissolved.
When NDTV contacted the phone number listed online for Ram Setu Infrastructure India Private Limited, the individual who answered identified himself as Mukesh from Yamuna Nagar in Haryana and denied any association with the company. He also said he had no knowledge of why his number was listed as the firm's contact.
Further analysis of public records suggests that while a similarly named firm once operated at the same address mentioned by I-PAC, it had been struck off several years before the loan was reportedly extended. Individuals previously listed as shareholders of the struck-off company have denied any connection with I-PAC or any involvement in providing loans to the organisation.
Financial statements indicate that I-PAC has repaid a portion of the Rs 13.5 crore loan in recent periods, though a substantial amount remains outstanding. However, the firm has not publicly clarified the precise identity or operational status of the lending entity named in its disclosures.
The discrepancies between I-PAC's filings and official corporate records have raised questions about the source of the funds and the accuracy of the disclosures, with no detailed explanation offered so far by the organisation.
