Some major financial scams in India have quite literally stirred-up the country in the past. These scams have consisted of fraudulent practices, corruption, and other malpractices. 

Here's a list of some of the biggest scams in India that lead to huge losses in the country:

1. Commonwealth Games Scam

© BCCL

The memory of the Commonwealth Games being held in India is still fresh for most of us. However, it also came along with eye-brow raising headlines for the controversies and corruption surrounding the organisation. 

With accusations of criminal conspiracy, cheating and forgery emerging every day back them, even the Chairman of Common Wealth Games 2010, Suresh Kalmadi, was accused of corruption and malpractices. 

It was estimated that the scam was for over Rs 70,000 crore. Gory details came out later of how Indian athletes were forced to stay in terrible conditions instead of the accommodation allotted to them by the authorities.

2. Nirav Modi PNB Bank fraud

© BCCL

In recent times, Nirav Modi PNB Bank fraud is easily one of the most controversial scams. Through Punjab National bankâs Brady house brand, Nirav Modi, his uncle Mehul Choksi and two senior PNB officials were also found to be guilty in the fraud of over Rs 11,400 Crore. 

In 2018, PNB filed a case with CBI accusing Nirav Modi and the companies he was associated with for obtaining Letters of Undertaking (LoUs) from PNB without paying up. This meant that all those companies failed to pay the loan.

3. Kingfisher Scam

© BCCL

From being Kingfisher's âKing of good timesâ to making it to the most-wanted list, liquor giant Kingfisher's Vijay Mallya, who absconded the country in 2016, continues to be in hot soup.)

After being heavily accused of fraud and money laundering in the country. He allegedly took loans for over Rs 9000 crore to keep his now-defunct Kingfisher airlines afloat. His Wikipedia page describes him as a fugitive businessman in the most wanted category.  

4. Coalgate Scam

The âCoalgateâ scam refers to the infamous political scandal that came to light back in 2012 when the UPA government was in power. 

The scam was essentially brought to light by the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) when they alleged that the government had been illegally allocating 194 coal blocks between the years 2004 and 2009. 

Of what was initially expected to be Rs 10 lakh crore came down to Rs 1.86 lakh crore in the end.

5. 2G Spectrum Scam 

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The 2G spectrum came to light back in 2008, and the government came under fire after being accused of undercharging mobile telephone companies for frequency allocation licenses that had to be used to create 2G spectrum subscriptions.

Former Telecom Minister A. Raja was at the helm of this scam. The CAG had stated that the difference between the money collected and that was mandated to be collected was about Rs. 1.76 trillion which comes down to Rs. 1,76,000 crore. 

In 2012, the spectrum was thankfully declared âunconstitutional and arbitraryâ by the Supreme Court and led to the cancellation of over 120 licenses.

6. BOFORS Scandal 

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A relatively old scam as compared to others, during the 1980s and 1990s a major weapons-contract was signed between India and Sweden. 

In 1986, India reportedly signed a deal worth approximately Rs 1437 crore with Swedish manufacturer Bofors AB, to supply their 155mm field howitzer to the Indian Army. 

Reportedly, politicians like then-Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi were also accused of taking bribes worth over Rs 64 crore for the deal.

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