File FIRs on fake notes: Govt

Taking a serious view of the recent discovery of counterfeit notes at a State Bank of India (SBI) branch, the government wants banks to promptly file complaints with the police every time they detect such cases. The move is aimed at speeding up investigations to catch the culprits.

SBI, which has over 10,000 branches, has cited difficulties in registering complaints, prompting Finance Minister P Chidmabaram to intervene in the matter, sources said.

Last month, the finance ministry discussed the issue with SBI Chairman O P Bhatt when he was in Delhi to attend a meeting of bank chiefs with the finance minister, the sources added.

In early August, wads of counterfeit notes were seized from SBI’s Domariyaganj branch in Siddarthnagar district of Uttar Pradesh. A senior SBI official said bank branches and controlling offices face a piquant situation where the top management expects prompt action, including filing of a first information report (FIR), while the local police is reluctant to register complaints often due to political pressure.

Of late, investigative agencies have raised concerns over the large circulation of counterfeit notes. While Uttar Pradesh is a prominent target as the state borders Nepal, the metros — which consume the maximum number of high-value currency notes — and coastal regions are also focus areas for counterfeiters, an official with a central investigative agency said. In the metros, the volume of currency transactions is very high, making it simpler to slip in fake currency notes.

According to a recent report by a news agency, a scanning of the currency chest by a team from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) found the presence of a large amount of counterfeit notes.