In the village of Kutubpur, located in the Mirapur region, villagers arrived at the Punjab National Bank branch and accused the branch manager of serious misconduct, leading to a heated confrontation.
In response to the villagers’ complaints, the Lead Bank Officer from Muzaffarnagar arrived to investigate allegations of bribery in connection with loan approvals. The villagers had filed a complaint with the bank’s higher authorities against the branch manager, Vijay Kumar, accusing him of corruption.
To investigate these allegations, bank officer Surendra Singh was sent to the branch. During this time, the villagers also visited the bank and engaged in a heated argument with the manager. The villagers accused the manager of demanding ₹10,000 as a bribe for every ₹100,000 loan approved, and of canceling loan files if the bribe was not paid.
It was further reported that the manager had appointed the bank’s cleaning staff as his agent, who would deceitfully obtain signatures on vouchers and withdraw money from customers’ accounts.
One villager claimed that he had applied for a ₹500,000 loan but only received ₹300,000, and was asked to pay a bribe of ₹30,000. When he refused, the remaining ₹200,000 was not disbursed, leaving his loan pending.
Other villagers also complained about being charged ₹20,000 for a ₹200,000 loan. Another villager stated that he had submitted a home loan application for ₹1,000,000, for which the bank manager demanded ₹100,000 as a bribe. When the amount was not paid, his application was left pending.
Another villager alleged that when he went to deposit ₹70,000 using his agricultural card, the cleaning staff fraudulently withdrew money from his account.
In another incident, a woman named Suman, who went to withdraw money using a cheque, claimed that the manager treated her disrespectfully and refused to release the funds. Responding to the accusations, Bank Manager Vijay Kumar denied all allegations, stating that he had not taken any bribes for loans and that those making these complaints were individuals who wanted loans approved by unfair means, prompting them to complain to higher authorities.
Lead Bank Officer Surendra Singh confirmed that complaints against the manager had been received and that the loan files handled by the manager were being reviewed. The findings will be reported to the higher authorities after the investigation is completed.
