Rs 33 lakh loan scam: EOW files FIR against bank officials, fraudsters

Indore: The Economic Offences Wing (EOW) has registered an FIR against a group of persons, including bank officials and a property valuer, for orchestrating a Rs 33 lakh loan fraud using forged property documents."The case involves Canara Bank (formerly Syndicate Bank), Nanda Nagar branch, and highlights a severe lapse in due diligence by bank authorities," an official press statement reads.The investigation was launched after a complaint was filed by bank's deputy general manager Anand Totad. The probe found that Karamat Khan, proprietor of M/s Abu Road Lines, initially secured a Rs 10 lakh loan in 2016. To increase the loan limit to Rs 33 lakh in 2017, the accused submitted forged title deeds for a property located at House No. 435-A, Green Park Colony, Indore.The scam came to light only after the account was declared a Non-Performing Asset (NPA) in Dec 2019. During recovery proceedings under SARFAESI Act, bank officials were shocked to discover that the property had already been mortgaged to Indian Bank and was auctioned off in 2021, the official EOW statement reads.The EOW found that the loan was sanctioned based on misleading and false reports provided by the bank's panel advocate and valuer. The investigation points to a criminal conspiracy involving Karamat Khan (borrower) and Mohammad Rafiq (property mortgagor), Jatin Gupta (former Branch Manager) and Kamlesh Darwani (former Credit Manager), Sunil Jain (valuer/engineer) and other associates. Authorities noted ‘serious irregularities' in KYC verification and mandatory due diligence process by the bank officials involved.