The Calcutta-based Bangur group is planning to wrest control of the bank through the appointment of directors from its front companies at the forthcoming annual general meeting slated for September 28.

According to sources close to the RBI, the central bank is unlikely to allow the resolutions--proposing the appointment of new directors--to go through at the AGM in Jaipur.

The bank has also received notices from shareholders under section 190 of the Companies Act 1956 about their intention to remove the existing auditors of the bank, ML Sharma, and appoint TR Chadha and Co as statutory auditors of the bank. The matter will be placed before the general body of the bank when it meets in Jaipur.

In a letter to the RBI on September 14, the BoR managing director and chief executive officer (CEO) I Sadashiva Gupta, said the bank had received notices from shareholdersunder section 257 of the Companies Act 1956 proposing the names of Shiv Kumar Mansinghka, GL Saraf, DC Srivastava, Sushil Maheshwari, Om Prakash Agarwal, JS Bhatnagar, Vivek Chaturvedi, CR Biyani and Sanjiv Kumar for appointment as directors.

The shareholders have also sent the names of Navin Kumar Tayal, Prem Kapoor, Praduman Kumar, AN Chakraborty and Anil Rao who belong to the Tayal group.

According to documents made available to The Financial Express, DC Srivastava belongs to Uxar Bharat Ltd which is a Bangur group company. Other Bangur group companies are Bangur Foundation Ltd (BFL), BFL Software, Shree Synthetics and Fort William Co.

The bank has also received notices from shareholders proposing the name of Sanjiv Kumar of BFL Exports Ltd as a director.

BoR has also received notices seeking the appointment of Radhey Shyam Agarwal and Hemant Kumar Mansinghka of Love Kush Exports Ltd. A BoR loan to the company, which was set up to deal in yarns and trade in shares in 1984, has beenclassified as an NPA in the sub-standard category and a provision of Rs 14.97 lakh was required to be made as on March 31, 1997, after derecognition of interest income of Rs 12.86 lakh.

Among the other directors proposed to be appointed are JS Bhatnagar of Tirupati Vinyog Pvt Ltd and Sushil Maheshwari of Deepak Jyoti Inv Pvt Ltd which, according to an RBI inspection report, is a company holding substantial shares in BoR. Incidentally, Tirupati Vinyog and Deepak Jyoti operate from the same premises in Calcutta (2, Chappel Road) and currently BoR is fighting a case with Tirupati.

The bank has also received notices under section 284 of the Companies Act 1956 for the removal of Pravin Kumar Tayal, Deepak Saruparia, BR Gupta, Som Prakash Arya, Sanjay Kumar Tayal, DB Sogani and DN Chaturvedi. While DB Sogani and DN Chaturvedi are believed to belong the Bangur group, the rest of the five directors belong the Tayal group and had been appointed as per RBI directives sent on November 28, 1998 and December 7, 1998.