Himalaya Harbinger, Rudrapur Bureau.
In a significant fraud, approximately Rs 17.92 crore was siphoned off from the Rudrapur branch of IndusInd Bank using counterfeit cheques from the government accounts of the Special Land Acquisition Officer (SLAO) in district Udham Singh Nagar of Uttarakhand, and district Baghpat of Uttar Pradesh. The fraudulent transactions took place between August 28 and 31, with four fake cheques used to withdraw the amount.
The matter came to light on Monday evening when SLAO Udham Singh Nagar, Kaustubh Mishra, noticed discrepancies during a routine monthly reconciliation of the accounts with the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI). “Upon checking the departmental account, we found a significant shortfall,” Mishra said. An internal investigation revealed that Rs 13.51 crore had been withdrawn through three fake cheques from the Rudrapur branch of IndusInd Bank on Nainital Road.
Further examination uncovered another fraudulent transaction, where Rs 4.41 crore was withdrawn using fake cheques from the SLAO Baghpat’s government account. These transactions were linked to compensation payments for National Highway 74.
Mishra further revealed a surprising detail: “The fake cheques used for these transactions are still present in the cheque book in our office.” Following the discovery, the police were alerted, and the administration quickly froze about Rs 6 crore deposited in various accounts suspected to be linked to the fraud.
Chandrashekhar Ghodke, SP Crime, Udham Singh Nagar, said, “The withdrawal amount has been transferred to three separate accounts using RTGS, NEFT and online transactions, which includes a Central Bank account in Jaipur, an Axis Bank account in Mumbai and an ICICI Bank account in Chandigarh. Subsequently, this amount was transferred to many other accounts. We are following the trails of these payments. We are analyzing CCTV footage and other evidence. IndusInd Bank officials and employees are being questioned and their involvement can’t be ruled out and efforts are underway to identify the culprits.”
