New Delhi, Feb 22: The Central Bureau of Investigation on Thursday arrested Rotomac Pens Owner Vikram Kothari and his son Rahul Kothari in connection to the loan default case amounting to over Rs 3,700 crores.

The arrest came nearly a day after the father-son duo were brought from Uttar Pradesh's Kanpur to the national capital for interrogation. While the Kotharis were grilled throughout the day, the CBI officers raided their residence and establishments in Kanpur.

Kothari, who has been charged as a "wilful defaulter" by the Bank of Baroda, has defaulted to loans amounting above Rs 3,700 crores to a total of seven public lenders: Allahabad Bank, Bank of India, Bank of Baroda, Bank of Maharashtra, Indian Overseas Bank, Oriental Bank of Commerce and Union Bank of India.

The case against him was registered shortly after scandal involving Nirav Modi came to light. The diamond czar allegedly defrauded the Punjab National Bank to a tune of Rs 11,400 crores, using fraudulent Letter of Undertakings (LoUs).

Kothari, among the handful of billionaire in Uttar Pradesh, refuted the allegations levelled against him by the banks. While speaking to reporters on Monday, he said, "Yes, I have taken loans from the bank, but I'm repaying also. It is wrong to call me a wilful defaulter. I'm not running anywhere away from Kanpur."

Kothari was declared as a wilful defaulter by the BoB in February last year. However, the claim was successfully challenged by him at the Allahabad High Court. Despite the receiving the verdict in his favour, he allegedly did not take sufficient efforts to settle his dues with the banks.

Several properties linked to Kothari was auctioned by BoB last year in a bid to recover the loan amount.

Although the Rotomac Pens chief maintained to be financially troubled, his opulent lifestyle raised concern over his claims as he continued to own a fleet of luxury cars, apart from residing in the super-luxury 'Santushi' mansion.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Feb 22, 2018 08:43 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).