KOCHI: The members of the UAE Business Losers Association have come up with an allegation there are attempts to portray them as frauds by a Kochi-based business consultancy organisation, which functions as the local agent of some UAE banks. Association members also alleged the company’s chief executive Prince Subrahmanian misinterpreted the power of attorney issued to UAE banks to initiate legal proceedings against them.
The association members V Vijayan and Dilip told media persons that Subrahmanian, chief executive of Xstream Management India Ltd, was tarnishing the image of the entire Malayalee businessmen in the Gulf through the media. Subrahmanian approached them offering his service to settle their liabilities with banks in the UAE. ‘’When we tried to settle the liabilities directly with banks after realising that he was cheating us, he started threatening and portraying us as frauds, Vijayan and Dilip said. This prompted us to come together and approach the police in order to prevent him from exploiting more people,” they said. “He approaches the affected people by offering his service to settle issues with banks and threatens them if they don’t agree. He collects a huge amount as consultancy fee. Later, he convinces the bank that there is no need for settlement and he will help them collect the full amount. He forces the affected person to sell their properties to the person suggested by him for settling the liabilities,” Vijayan said.
“We are ready for settlement with the banks. But we don’t want to engage Subrahmanian for the same,” Dileep said. When contacted, Subrahmanian denied the allegations and said he held the power of Attorney to act as an agent of the National Bank of Ras Al-Khaimah, National Bank of Fujairah and Arab Bank. ‘’I am not the recovery agent of the banks, but offer service to help the banks trace those who fled to India after availing loans by producing fake documents. The power of attorney I hold are registered with UAE courts, UAE Ministry of External Affairs and the registrar in Ernakulam. I was actually trying to help them settle the deal. There are 48 cases pending before the Chief Judicial Magistrate Court, Ernakulam, against expats who cheated UAE banks. The CBCID is carrying out investigations in 18 cases of cheating. Senior officers of the banks themselves had come to Kochi recently for giving statements,” Subrahmanian clarified.