new delhi the central bureau of investigation cbi on booked jagdish khattar the former managing director of maruti suzuki for alleged criminal conspiracy criminal misconduct and cheating punjab national bank on loans amounting to rs 110 crore that were taken by carnation a company that he set up after stepping down from indias largest carmakerthe cbi fir registered on december 20 alleged that khattar along with unknown public servants cheated the bank of the amount as he had failed to repay his debtkhattar however denied the allegations the former civil servant who quit to join what was originally called maruti udyog ltd said as the founderpromoter of carnation his savings accumulated through decades of working had been eroded due to losses in the venturei had put my money into it and i had risked my entire life savings i did lose money in all this khattar told toi on tuesday while asserting that all business and financial decisions were taken after consultation and knowledge of investors who were on the board of the companyhe said carnation was a bonafide business failure there is no wrongdoing a detailed forensic audit was conducted earlier this year by a leading independent auditor and nothing amiss was found the bank has now referred it to the cbi as a part of the process followed by them search was conducted by the cbi but nothing incriminating was found we will be vindicated once the investigation is completed khattar saidbankers said pnb had lodged a complaint some months ago and the cbi began probing only recently pnb along with a few other banks had lent close to rs 200 crore to khattars companykhattar was with maruti from 1993 to 2007 and retired as md of the company following his superannuation he launched carnation realty pvt ltd and carnation broking for which he got a loan of rs 170 crore in 2009 the loan was classified as a nonperforming asset npa in 2015 with effect from 2012 the cbi fir has said carnation was established as a car servicing and repair outlet of various brands it also dealt in sale and purchase of secondhand vehiclesthe company was later sent for insolvency resolution under the insolvency and bankruptcy codekhattar said he had some of the best professionals working with him on the venture and there was complete transparency in how the company functioned carnation was a boardmanaged company with the highest ethical standards and best management practices some of the most reputed investors in the country including premji invest and gaja capital were board members who in their own interest kept a tight vigil on its operations and finances each financial decision was based on comprehensive business plans and approvals he saidthe cbi fir however seemed to suggest otherwise the accused borrowers dishonestly and fraudulently sold the goods hypothecated to the bank without its permission and diverted the funds thereby causing criminal breach of trust and cheating causing wrongful loss to the bank and corresponding gain to themselves