Manager booked for siphoning off ₹1.32 Cr from transport firm

Sunil Tiwari, manager of a transport firm, has been booked for allegedly opening new branches and siphoning off ₹1.32 crore without his employer's knowledge. The owner of the firm, Kshama Shah, discovered Tiwari had opened an office in New Delhi and diverted payments to new bank accounts. Tiwari claims he was growing the company's business. No arrests have been made yet.

MUMBAI: Police have booked Sunil Tiwari, the manager of a transport firm, for allegedly opening new branches of the firm without his employer’s knowledge and siphoning off ₹1.32 crore.

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The case against Tiwari, registered at the Dongri police station, was based on a complaint by Kshama Shah (38), the owner of Southern Roadlines and Transport India. The company has an office in Masjid Bunder, and its clients include the Navy, the Army and various corporate firms.

In her complaint, Shah stated although her mother was the proprietor of the firm, she had been managing its day-to-day affairs since her father Kamlesh Shukla’s demise in 2011. Tiwari had joined the firm in 2000, when he had nothing and her father supported him including by providing him with a residence, noted Shah.

“The complainant also works for a bank and relied on Sunil Tiwari to run the transport firm, especially after her marriage. But she grew suspicious when company’s annual turnover fell from ₹80 lakh to ₹35 lakh,” said a police officer from Dongri police station.

“She read several reviews where people were thanking them for their service in New Delhi. She also got calls on the company’s phone about their services in the capital and realised that no money was being deposited in the company’s bank account in lieu of these services,” said the police officer.

Meanwhile, Shah recollected having given Tiwari the permission to open an office in the capital earlier. But Tiwari had told her that their application for empanelment with the Indian Navy was rejected and the office was not required.

Acting on her suspicions, Shah subsequently visited Delhi and found an office of the firm in the city’s southern fringes. She also found out that Tiwari had opened new bank accounts in the name of the firm, and payments worth ₹1.32 crore were diverted to these accounts between 2018 and 2023.

“When Tiwari was questioned, he told them that he was growing the company’s business,” said the police officer.

Tiwari has been booked under Sections 420 (cheating), 419 (punishment for cheating by personation), 408 (criminal breach of trust by clerk or servant), 465 (punishment for forgery), 468 (forgery for the purpose of cheating) and 467 (forgery of valuable security) of the Indian Penal Code. The police are yet to make any arrests in the case.