Branch Manager assaulted inside Bank in Chhattisgarh, Branches Closed in Protest

Balrampur, Chhattigarh: In Ambikapur, police have arrested a man accused of assaulting the branch manager of the Shankargarh branch of the District Cooperative Central Bank.

In protest against the incident, the main branch of the cooperative bank along with 33 other branches remained closed for half a day on Friday, August 8. The incident took place in the Shankargarh police station area.

On 7th August, branch manager Vijay Yadav was working in his cabin when farmer Santosh Kumar Yadav (45) arrived at the bank to discuss a loan settlement.

The manager informed him that his earlier application had already been sent to the district office, and that he still had an outstanding loan amount of ₹12,000. This led to a heated argument, during which Santosh allegedly slapped and assaulted the manager.

According to Vijay Yadav, when bank staff tried to intervene, the accused also threatened to kill him before fleeing the scene. Based on the complaint, Shankargarh police registered a case under sections 296, 351(2), 115(2), 132, and 221 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).

On Friday, the Cooperative Bank Officers and Employees Union submitted a memorandum to the Sarguja District Collector and the authorised officer of the District Cooperative Bank, demanding better security in banks and the immediate arrest of the accused. In protest, the main branch and all 33 branches of the cooperative bank remained closed for half a day.

Shankargarh police station in-charge Jitendra Jaiswal stated that the accused, Santosh Yadav, was arrested on Friday. He was produced in court in the evening and sent to judicial custody.