Note seizure: FIR names two bank managers

Mumbai: The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI)’s FIR against officials of the Beed-based Vaidyanath Urban Cooperative Bank Limited, and others, for their suspected role in an alleged criminal conspiracy for the fraudulent transportation of Rs 25 crore in demonetised currency for changing them to legal tender, included the names of two of its managers. “Two of the bank managers, S. Dharmaraj and B.M. Shaha, who headed the branches Pune’s Pimpri-Chinchwad and Mumbai’s Ghatkopar, respectively, were named in the FIR along with a Mumbai-based doctor and an Aurangabad hospital,” said a CBI source.

The FIR was lodged under sections related to alleged criminal conspiracy read with cheating, criminal breach of trust, criminal breach of trust by public servant or by merchant, falsification of accounts and criminal misconduct by public servant.  

According to CBI, the alleged transportation of the demonetised currencies occurred on November 19 when it was taken in a four-wheeler from the bank’s head office in Beed to its Ghatkopar branch, for changing it to legal tender in violation of RBI rules. The rules came into being since November 8 when the Centre demonetised Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes. Out of the Rs 25 crore transported by the bank, Rs 15 crore was allegedly deposited with the Maharashra State Urban Cooperative Bank, while the rest was being transported back to Beed when the Mumbai police intercepted the consignment on December 15 in Chembur. Based on specific inputs, the police had kept a watch at a traffic junction for a four-wheeler transporting the cash.  The police said the bank was transporting the cash from the Ghatkopar branch to Pune branch.

Despite attempts by The Asian Age on Friday, it could not reach state minister Pankaja Munde and Pritam Munde for a comment. Pritam had however told media in Delhi, after the seizure in Mumbai, that the cash was accounted for and there was nothing illegal. “It was going from one bank to another. This was no unaccounted money. It was a routine cash transfer,” Pritam had said. The bank in a statement has also said that the seized cash was part of a larger transaction of Rs 25 crore earlier transported from the main Parli branch to Mumbai.