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Fake currency worth ₹17 crore found at Punjab National Bank chest, SIT set up for probe
PNB earlier suspended three bank officials whose roles came under suspicion during the bank’s preliminary inquiry into the discovery of the fake currency.
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The Uttar Pradesh Police has constituted a special investigation team (SIT) to probe into the alleged circulation and storage of counterfeit currency worth around ₹17 crore at a Punjab National Bank’s (PNB) currency chest in Saharanpur, with the police widening the investigation to neighbouring districts, as well as Haryana and Uttarakhand, officials aware of the matter said on Tuesday.
The development comes after PNB suspended three bank officials whose roles came under suspicion during the bank’s preliminary inquiry into the discovery of the fake currency. A departmental inquiry has also been initiated by the bank, while an investigation by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) is underway.
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Case registered against three PNB officials
The three officials were also booked on Monday on the complaint of PNB Meerut chief manager and nodal officer Arun Kumar Chaubey. They were identified as Ravi Kumar Kansay, senior manager at PNB’s divisional office; Sushil Kumar Sharma, manager of the currency chest at Sophia Market; and Amit Kumar, manager of the PNB currency chest at Khera Bazaar in Yamunanagar-Jagadhri, Haryana. A part-time housekeeper, Vishal Kumar, was also named in the complaint.
“A case had been registered on the complaint of the bank’s chief manager against the three managers and the part-time housekeeper. He said the bank was conducting its own inquiry while police were investigating the entire matter,” Saharanpur DIG Abhishek Singh said.
The case was registered under BNS sections 178 (counterfeiting currency), 316 (criminal breach of trust), and 318 (cheating).
Shortage in currency
People aware of the matter said the irregularity initially surfaced after a shortage was detected in currency sent from the PNB branch at Ghantaghar in Saharanpur to the RBI currency chest in Jaipur, following which a probe was launched.
During the subsequent audit, which began on August 9, officials found 148 bundles of counterfeit currency, each containing a thousand ₹500 notes. The initial value of the fake notes was calculated at ₹7.40 crore.
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As the audit of currency continued, the amount of counterfeit currency detected increased to around ₹17 crore. CCTV footage shows part-time housekeeper Vishal Kumar removing notes from currency bundles while working inside the currency chest.
