The State Bank of India (SBI) has returned ₹8 crore to the account holders who were victims of financial fraud at the bank’s Sadiq branch in Faridkot district. The fraud was committed by cashier Amit Dhingra. SBI had first estimated the fraud amount to be around ₹15 crore. However, after checking the records, the bank found the total loss to be ₹8 crore.
SBI regional manager Harpreet Singh said on Wednesday that the bank initially received complaints claiming losses of ₹15 crore. SBI is India’s largest public sector bank and a highly trusted bank.
“About 200 people complained that cashier Amit Dhingra had cheated them of large amounts of money. The bank examined all their account details. Around 30 complaints were rejected due to a lack of evidence. We have refunded about ₹8 crore to the affected customers along with compensation,” he said.
The fraud came to notice on July 21, when a villager discovered major discrepancies in his account and informed the bank. Soon after, other customers reported similar irregularities, exposing a large-scale scam that has now affected nearly 200 villagers. Initially, 186 complaints were lodged, pointing to losses of around ₹14 crore. In the last 20 days alone, 14 more complaints have been filed, raising the estimated fraud amount by another ₹1 crore. Dhingra was arrested on July 31 in Mathura. An FIR was registered at the Sadiq police station on the complaint of SBI deputy manager Shashank Shekhar Arora.
Police found that Dhingra’s wife, Rupinder Kaur, and a former friend, Abhishekh Kumar Gupta, were also involved in the fraud. Dhingra and Gupta are currently in judicial custody. The Punjab and Haryana High Court granted bail to Rupinder on September 30.
According to police, Dhingra issued fake fixed deposit (FD) receipts to customers while stealing money from their savings accounts and Kisan Credit Cards (KCCs). Money was withdrawn without the knowledge of account holders. Fake FD receipts were issued, and even the nominee names were changed in several cases. Sources said the investigation found suspicious transactions worth ₹2.30 crore in Rupinder’s bank account. Rupinder works for the Life Insurance Corporation (LIC).
“Her account was allegedly controlled by Dhingra, and it was linked to his mobile number. Gupta was arrested on August 7, and gold ornaments and other items were recovered from him,” the official said.
According to SBI officials, before the scam was exposed, Dhingra had been transferred to another branch in Sadiq.
“But instead of joining his new branch, he kept visiting the previous branch and accessed the banking system fraudulently. As soon as the bank received information that customers had been cheated, a police complaint was filed the same day,” the officials said.
-
-
-
-
-
-
