Nitin Desai’s death: Edelweiss and its CEO will also be probed, says Devendra Fadnavis

The announcement by Fadnavis came after Bandra West MLA Ashish Shelar demanded that the inquiry into Desai’s death must not be carried out from a larger perspective. He said that Desai had made a name for himself in the field of art direction with his talent and accomplishments.

“It is tragic that the winner of four national awards had to end his life in this manner. He had taken a loan of Rs 180 crore on the ND Studio, which rose to Rs 252 crore. This brings to the spotlight the functioning of the lending system by one Rashesh Shah and his ARC Edelweiss company,” he said.

The MLA, therefore, demanded that a special inquiry team should investigate aspects such as the interest rate levied, the yearly changes to the rate and the recovery methods employed by the company.

He also said that he was aware of two more cases against the same lender and that he would submit them to the home minister.

According to Raigad police, Desai can be purportedly heard blaming a few people in connection with Rs 252-crore debt that he was facing in the audio clips seized from his studio.

An officer said that they have sent the audio notes to the Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) to confirm its authenticity.

“There are several audio clips in which he has made allegations against a few people. He has also requested the government to ensure that the studio is not seized,” the official added.

On July 25, the Mumbai bench of the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) ordered “initiation of Corporate Insolvency Resolution Process (CIRP)” against Nitin Desai’s company — ND’s Art World Private Limited — in view of an outstanding debt of Rs 252.48 crore.

The bench also appointed Jitender Kothari as the interim resolution professional to carry out the steps mentioned under the Insolvency & Bankruptcy Code, 2016.