NGO accuses Kotak Bank staff of fraud

INDORE : An Indore-based NGO, Mahila Utkarsh Sanghathan has alleged that a sum of Rs 10.10 crores was fraudulently withdrawn from its account in different transactions during the past one year and charged the Kotak Mahindra Bank authorities with being responsible for it. The bank authorities have filed an FIR seeking investigation in the allegations.
Taking to the streets on Thursday, the NGO officials said no headway has been made even after they filed the police complaint at Kolkata on September 20, 2010 against the bank manager Niloy Ghosh and three others. NGO chairperson Sonia Sharma said they had opened an account in Kolkata's Salt Lake branch on October 20, 2009 after they started receiving donations from there. After receiving certificate from the union finance ministry authorising us for Rs 30 crores worth donations, we had opened an account in Kolkata'' said Sharma.
Sharma alleged that "Even after six months of opening the account, we contacted the bank when we did not get the cheque book and other relevant documents at our headquarters in Indore''. The matter came to light, when the donors contacted the NGO informing them of their donations, but they were not reflected in the bank account in Kolkata. Sharma said they cross checked by tallying the amount after depositing Rs five lakhs.
"The account status then reflected that from the day of opening the account to May 5, 2010 a sum of Rs 10,10,37377 was withdrawn in 45 transactions," without the organisation's knowledge or authorization, claimed Sharma. She added that they were not informed of any transaction even though the RBI rules stipulated that any transaction more than Rs 10 lakh should be informed to the account holder.
The NGO then filed an FIR under section 465, 468, 471, and 120 (B) of IPC holding the bank manager responsible with three others. The NGO has taken up the issue with the RBI and the CBI. Sharma alleged that the bank instead of sending communiques on its Indore address as they had sought, was sending it at a Kolkata address.
The bank authorities have denied the allegations. Rohit Rao, the bank's head corporate (Communications) in a written communication, responding to the TOI queries, denied all the allegations by the NGO.
Rao instead countered that the withdrawals were done by the NGO itself, and the signatures on the withdrawal cheques matched that as per their records.