Supreme Court clears former Indian Bank manager and probes surplus auction funds

In a landmark judgment, the Supreme Court acquitted ex-branch manager V Balakrishnan of Indian Bank’s Anna Nagar branch, ruling that the CBI’s evidence was fundamentally flawed and that the loans in question had been fully recovered. The court observed that the bank retained more than ₹2.7 crore in surplus auction proceeds, despite the loans being satisfied, and questioned why the legal heirs had not been identified or compensated.

Justices J B Pardiwala and K Vinod Chandran ordered the bank to submit detailed records of the two loan accounts, the auction outcomes, and the disposition of the excess money, and to produce the title deeds of the mortgaged properties. The matter will return to the apex court on October 5 to verify the bank’s compliance. The original conviction, based on alleged collusion with retired IOB officer P Kumaradevan, was set aside after the court found no proof of over-valuation or illicit receipt of funds.