CBI registers Rs 800-million bank fraud case against PNB officials

The CBI has registered 22 cases against officials of Punjab National Bank relating to fraud in bank loans processed by them on the basis of forged documents causing a loss of over Rs 800 million to the bank, the agency said today.

The cases relate to four branches of the bank in Bhopal and Ujjain in Madhya Pradesh.

"Searches were conducted at the office and residential premises of the accused at 47 places in Bhopal, Ujjain, Indore and Vidisha (Madhya Pradesh), Kaithal and Gurugram (Haryana), Hoshiarpur (Punjab), Noida and Agra (Uttar Pradesh), Mumbai and Delhi," a Central Bureau of Investigation statement said.

It said the bank alleged in its complaint that the officials had fraudulently sanctioned and disbursed loans to private persons dealing in coal business from 2011 to 2016.

"It was alleged that the loans were sanctioned against inflated valuation of the collateral securities. The said borrowers thereafter disposed of the primary security without depositing the proceeds with the bank, thereby causing alleged loss of Rs 80 million," the statement said.

The searches led to the recovery of "incriminating" documents, stamps, hard discs and details of bank lockers, it said.