By 
Dr. Bavaguthu Raghuram (BR) Shetty, founder of UAE-based healthcare provider NMC Healthcare and UAE Exchange, has filed a commercial suit before the Bombay High Court against Bank of Baroda (BoB), its officials, former NMC executives and other defendants.
He wants damages of more than $15 billion (about ₹1.43 lakh crore). The suit is titled Dr. BR Shetty v. Bank of Baroda & Ors. It has brought fresh attention to the money problems that led to the fall of NMC Health, which used to be one of the biggest private healthcare providers in the UAE.
Claims Against Former Executives:
The suit was filed through his power of attorney holder, Dr. Shishir Shetty. It says that former NMC executives Prasanth and Promoth Manghat took company funds and made unauthorised money transfers between 2012 and 2017.
During those years, Shetty was away from the company’s daily work because he was busy with charity activities. According to Shetty, the two executives took control of the company’s finances and moved money through fake supplier companies. He also says his signature was copied from an electronic template and used on loan guarantees without his knowledge or consent.
Allegations Against Bank of Baroda:
Shetty’s main claim is that Bank of Baroda helped the alleged fraud happen, rather than just failing to stop it. He says the bank’s officials moved money in circles through shell companies to make the group look profitable.
He says they ignored more than 100 internal alerts about money laundering. He also says they accepted illegal gifts, including luxury electronic goods and a Rolex watch, to hide the group’s borrowings from the company’s auditors. The suit further says the bank gave out separate balance confirmation certificates to hide nearly AED 980 million of company debt from the auditors, Ernst & Young (EY).
Look Out Circular:
Shetty says the problems came to light in late 2019. After that, he claims the bank tried to blame him for the wrongdoing. He says BoB gave false returns to the Reserve Bank of India and wrongly got a Look Out Circular (LOC) issued against him.
This stopped him from travelling outside India for more than three years. The Karnataka High Court later cancelled the LOC.
The $600 Million Settlement:
The suit also points out that Bank of Baroda reportedly paid about $600 million (around ₹5,700 crore) to settle claims made by NMC’s administrators in Abu Dhabi. At the same time, the bank kept going after Shetty over the same loan guarantees. Shetty says he was shown as a defaulter and accused of the very wrongdoing that he says he was a victim of.
Damages Sought:
Shetty is asking for damages in three parts. He wants $5 billion for direct losses, which include lost shareholdings and debts placed on him. He wants another $5 billion for losses that followed, such as lost business chances and lost income. He wants a further $5 billion from Bank of Baroda alone for destroying his business reputation.
These claims are part of an ongoing legal dispute, and the court will decide the final outcome.
