What former Tata Finance MD Dilip Pendse said in his suicide letter
By
Ramarko Sengupta TNN UPDATED JULY 6 2017
Former Tata Finance managing director (MD) Dilip Pendse allegedly committed suicide by hanging from a ceiling fan in his office in Mumbai's Dadar (East) on Wednesday morning. Pendse was 61 years old and was reportedly once part of Tata Group chairman emeritus Ratan Tata's inner circle. A Tata Group employee who did not wish to be named said, " Pendse was once Mr Tata's blue-eyed boy, his protege." Pendse fell from grace after a Rs 500-crore fraud at Tata Finance broke out while he was at the
helm.
The 61-year old -- who some old-time company insiders say could have had a career as glorious as current Tata Group chairman N Chandrasekaran -- left a seven-line suicide note. "We found a seven line suicide note in which Pendse had written that no one should be blamed for the step he had taken. He was frustrated due to legal cases going on against him and thus, decided to end his life. He also mentioned in the suicide note that his last rites should be carried out in Pune," " the official said. In the note he left, he also asked his wife to "forgive" him.
The former top executive of the Tata's was saddled with legal cases for over 15 years. Pendse was reportedly under depression over a pending 2003 case in which he was arrested by Delhi Police for his alleged involvement in misappropriation of funds, sources said.
Over five crore Indians suffer from depression, a major contributor to global suicides which occur mainly in developing countries like India, according to a 2015 WHO (World Health Organisation) study.
Last year, 47-year-old Britannica CEO (Chief Operating Officer) Vineet Whig had jumped to his death from a building in Gurugram. The suicide note found in his pocket reportedly stated that he was ending his life as he was "fed up" with himself.
In 2014, then Tata Motors MD Karl Slym allegedly killed himself by jumping off a hotel window in Bangkok, Thailand. Thai investigators blamed the suicide on domestic issues, saying he had had a fight with his wife
Pendse's legal troubles
Pendse's legal troubles started after he was alleged to have siphoned off company funds through two subsidiaries, Nishkalp Investments and Inshallah Investments. In the late 1990s, Pendse allegedly diverted Tata Finance depositors' funds through these two subsidiaries, and invested them in various new economy stocks. These stocks tumbled during the dot-com crash of 2000-01.
The alleged fraud came to light while Tata Finance's application for a Rs 90 crore rights issue in 2001 was under scrutiny by market regulator Sebi (Securities and Exchange Board of India). Sebi raised questions on the investments in these two subsidiaries. Investigations revealed that the funds were further diverted by Pendse to his personal companies, through which investments were made in the new economy stocks.
After this, Tata Finance appointed audit firm AF Fergusson as an independent auditor to scrutinise the company's books. The investigation revealed that the investments in two subsidiaries, Nishkalp Investments and Inshallah Investments, bled Tata Finance, incurring them a loss of nearly Rs 500 crore. Interestingly, the audit firm found itself mired in controversy after taking up the investigation when one of its senior partners, YM. Kale was forced to resign after his role in preparing the internal report for Tata Finance was questioned by the group.
Pendse always maintained that the Tata Group's top brass was aware of the transactions that came under scrutiny.
In October 2002, Sebi started a probe on a complaint from Tata Finance about Pendse conducting "illegal carry forward transactions in the scrips of Himachal Futuristic Communications Ltd, Tata Engineering and Locomotive Co.Ltd (now Tata Motors), Infosys and Software Solutions India Ltd".
Sebi had also said that these transactions were conducted by Pendse in complicity with two brokers- Jhunjhunwala Stock Brokers Pvt. Ltd and Pratik Stock Vision Pvt.Ltd- and on behalf of Inshallah Investments in which a Tata Finance subsidiary, Niskalp Investment and Trading, had a vital interest.
Pendse was issued a showcause notice by Sebi in April 2009 after investigations.
In June last year, Sebi finally barred Pendse and three other entities from accessing the capital market for manipulations at the time of Tata Finance's rights issue in 2001. "Considering the admitted mis-statement made in the letter of offer pertaining to the rights issue regarding the accounts of Nishkalp, it can be concluded that the affairs of the companies were mismanaged to commit fraud on the investors," the market regulator said in its order.
Pendse's career at the Tata Group lasted over two decades. He is survived by his wife, who he used to share an apartment with him on the floor above his office in Royal Grace Apartments. The former Tata Finance MD also a son from an earlier marriage who lives in New Jersey, USA.
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