Raipur: The Economic Offences Wing, Bhubaneswar arrested the Assistant Manager of IDBI Bank from Chhattisgarh’s Raipur in relation to embezzlement of public money.
The accused has been identified as Tanmay Kumar Maharana, Ex-Asset Officer (now Asst. Manager) of IDBI Bank, Dandamukundapur Branch, Pipili.
The EOW arrested the accused on 06.03.2024 from Raipur, Chhattishgarh, in EOW PS Case No.03 dt.29.02.2024U/s 409/420/467/468/471/120-B IPC.
The arrested accused was produced before the court of JMFC, Raipur and was brought on the strength of transit remand. He will be produced before the Designated Court under OPID Act, Cuttack today i.e. on 07.03.2024.
The case was registered on the allegation of Sandeep Pattnaik, General Manager, IDBI Bank, Bhubaneswar that Shri Sarojkanta Mohapatra, ExBranch Head (now Manager) and Tanmay Kumar Maharana, Ex-Asset Officer (now Asst. Manager), IDBI Bank, Dandamukundapur Branch had illegally sanctioned 35 fictitious loans (majorly MUDRA loans) amounting to Rs.3.70 Cr.mostly in favour of their close relative/acquaintances.
During investigation, it was found that the Govt. cash of Rs.3.7 Cr. was deposited in 2 bank accounts of BDO, Pipili maintained with IDBI Bank, Dandamukundapur Branch, Pipili. During 2018, BDO, Pipili, had requested the bank for Fexi Fixed Deposit (FFD) of the above amount, and as per the advice of the then accused Branch Manager, the then BDO, Pipili had issued 07 No. of “Yourself” cheques for the purpose.
It was also falsely intimated by the bank that the amount has been deposited in the Flexi Account, giving the details of the interest accrued thereupon.
During the year 2022, when the BDO, Pipili Block sought for the details of the Flexi Account and the statements of the account, the bank intimated that no such FFD has ever been booked/created from the accounts of BDO, Pipili.
When the matter was pursued with the bank, an internal investigation was conducted by the bank, in which it was surfaced that Rs.3.7 Cr. of Pipili Block Office deposited with the bank has been misappropriated by the then bank officials who have diverted the amount for their wrongful gain.
Investigation revealed that Sri Sarojkanta Mohapatra and Tanmay Kumar Maharana, the respective Ex-Branch Manager and Ex-Asset Officer of IDBI Bank, Dandamukundapur Branch had fraudulently created 35 fictitious MUDRA loans amounting to Rs.10 lakhs each in the name of their close relatives /acquaintances, without the knowledge of the loanees.
The disbursement of the loans was made to 35 loanees out of the funds of bank covered under General Ledger Account. The loan amounts were found to have transferred/diverted invariably to one particular account.
Further, in order to avoid audit, the above noted two bank officers closed the MUDRA loans so created fraudulently by transferring the cash from the accounts of BDO, Pipili. They could manage it by giving the false impression to the BDO that the amount has been deposited in the Flexi Account.
The arrested accused Tanmay Maharana by entering into a criminal conspiracy with the then Branch Manager fraudulently created false MUDRA loan accounts in the name of different persons majorly in the name of their relatives and misappropriated the amount by diverting to an account of their
interest.
The loanees have never applied for the loans nor did they avail the loan amount. By using the forged documents, the accd. bank officials cheated the bank and misappropriated the Govt. cash of Rs.3.7 Cr. kept in the bank. The accused Bank officials have also been suspended from their service due to such fraudulent conduct.
The investigation of the case underway.
