Founder chairman of Atlas Group MM ‘Atlas’ Ramachandran who was arrested by the Dubai Police after complaints against him for defaulting on loans has said the hroup will repay loans at any cost.

Emirates24x7 has reported that a statement released by the 73-year-old jeweler from Kerala says, “We are willing to repay our dues at any cost even if it means selling our assets. We have had very good relationship with banks so far and we hope to continue that way.”

A Reuters report had confirmed earlier that the Dubai Police arrested Ramachandran and his daughter in cases related to suspected bounced cheques.

Trouble started brewing for the group after around 15 banks operating in Dubai approached the Dubai police complaining that the group had defaulted on loan payments running up to Dh550 million (approximately Rs 1000 crores). 

Meanwhile, Khaleej Times reported that Ramachandran’s bail application was rejected and trial in the dud cheque case will commence in two weeks.

MM Ramachandran is being held in a detention centre in Bur Dubai and his daughter has been lodged in the women’s section of the detention centre.

The Dubai Gold and Jewellery Group, of which Atlas is a member of, have also offered to help Atlas bail out, according to reports.

Tawhid Abdullah, chairman of Dubai Gold and Jewellery Group, of which Atlas is a member of, told Khaleej Times that the trade body was willing to find a solution to the issue.

He added that they believed there was no bad intention on the part of MM Ramachandran and putting him behind bars was not the right way to solve the issue.

"If someone wanted to cheat, he could have left the country months ago. As a group, we are ready to help out a long-time member. There are several solutions. But for all these we need to sit and talk with the banks and the troubled company,” Tawhid Abdullah.

The Atlas group   has almost 50 showrooms across the United Arab Emirates in Sharjah, Abu Dhabi, Saudi Arabia, Dubai, Qatar and Ras Al Khaimah.