Woman In Delhi Loses Rs. 10 Lakh From Her FD Account
Update: 2023-11-21 11:31 IST
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A woman from Delhi had been saving money for her daughter for a few years in a fixed deposit account with a well-known international private bank. However, she recently discovered that someone had emptied her account, which had about Rs 10 lakh.
Based on the woman's complaint, Delhi Police filed a case against the bank's Mumbai headquarters, naming the bank's chairman and Delhi branch manager. Authorities believe Delhi bank employees defrauded the woman by working along with employees of other nearby banks. Police say the money is currently in an unidentified account.
The Preet Vihar resident, who is employed at a private firm in Delhi, revealed that she had held a savings bank account with the bank for more than ten years. She explained that she initially opened the account to save money for her daughter's education. The balance in the account was Rs 5.98 lakh as of September 29, 2016.
She then mentioned that she was advised by the bank to open a fixed deposit (FD) account at a Bharatpur branch and transfer the funds to it. Additionally, she stated that a bank officer at the Preet Vihar branch suggested various investment plans to her.
She said that she agreed to commit Rs 5 lakh annually to the 'Girl Child Plan'. According to the police, the first installment was deducted in 2016, followed by another deduction in 2017. She further explained that at some point, she received a call from the bank requesting the deposit of the third installment.
Given that it was not yet due, she visited the bank to seek clarification. At the bank, she was informed that such calls are made from call centers at the headquarters, which are outsourced. The woman alleged that the bank staff admitted that the installment was not yet due.
According to the woman, the bank told her the call was a "mistake." They (later) sent them a third installment cheque. The manager and bank representatives informed her later that the funds had been moved to another account. She was startled. One of her signatures was faked. When she tried to talk to the manager, he said he would call income tax officials and threatened to put her in a bogus case.
Her complaint read, “They either criminally misappropriated the funds or handled them in such a negligent manner that they lost the funds to another unauthorised account without my approval,”reported The Indian Express.
According to the police, an FIR was filed when the woman wrote to the Police Commissioner and addressed the Consumer Court. Senior executives and the bank manager would be questioned.