HC notice on demand to transfer probe in Rs 1.1cr pledged gold case

Ahmedabad: The Gujarat high court has issued notice to the state govt on a plea seeking transfer of investigation into an FIR registered with Rajkot police over missing gold ornaments worth Rs 1.15 crore from a bank's custody after the jewellery was pledged by a couple for loans.Petitioners Sangeeta Shah and Shyam Shah had availed two MSME jewel loan facilities in 2023 from Indian Bank's Rajkot branch by pledging 1,004.1 grams of 22-carat jewellery, including gold ornaments and gemstones, with a market value of Rs 1.15 crore. The couple lodged an FIR with Rajkot A-Division police station in Dec 2025 after the jewellery went missing from the bank's custody. After the couple approached the HC seeking directions to the Reserve Bank of India to initiate action against Indian Bank for negligence, the bank settled the dispute by offering compensation of Rs 1.32 crore last month. The couple has again approached the HC through advocate Nimit Shukla, alleging that Rajkot police has failed to properly investigate the case and seeking transfer of the probe, preferably to a special investigation team (SIT), to thoroughly identify those responsible for the missing jewellery. The petitioners pointed out that police filed an affidavit before the sessions court stating that one accused person had allegedly handed over the strong room keys to a peon. This, they said, reflects serious procedural lapses in safeguarding high-value pledged property. However, the probe has not clarified whether the handover was authorized, documented, supervised, or in violation of banking protocols. The role of the peon and accountability of supervising officers for permitting or ignoring such conduct have not been adequately examined, the petitioners stated. The petitioners also stated that they submitted a detailed representation to police on Feb 7 seeking a thorough probe, but no progress was made thereafter. The HC has sought a reply from the concerned authorities and scheduled the next hearing for June 30.
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