Gorakhpur: In a serious case raising concerns over internal accountability in the banking sector, a branch manager and two employees of a private bank have been booked on charges of alleged fraud and conspiracy after a customer accused them of manipulating his account and causing losses running into lakhs of rupees. Acting on the victim’s complaint, a court directed the registration of a case, following which police initiated an investigation into the matter.
The case pertains to a branch located on Park Road under the Cantt police station area. According to the complaint, the accused include branch manager Krishna Mohan Pandey and employees Vivek Pandey and Priya. The allegations suggest that the trio acted in coordination to carry out unauthorised activities on the customer’s account, leading to significant financial damage.
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UPI Scanner Visit Followed by Account Trouble
The complainant, Ranjit Singh, a resident of Chotarwa in Khajni and proprietor of Jai Shri Lakshmi Grih Udyog in Sector-15, GIDA, stated that he maintained an account at the same bank branch. The sequence of events began on June 22, 2025, when he transferred ₹81,000 from his account to his mother’s account without any issue. However, what followed raised serious suspicions.
The next day, Singh approached the branch manager for installing a UPI scanner for his business operations. Acting on instructions, bank staff visited his location and conducted a test transaction of ₹1 to verify the setup. According to Singh, things took an unusual turn nearly three weeks later.
SIM Disruption and Mobile App Login Raise Suspicion
On July 15, 2025, Singh’s mobile network suddenly stopped working, which he initially did not consider alarming. However, after obtaining a replacement SIM card on July 17, he faced difficulties while trying to log into his bank account. When he contacted the branch manager, he was informed that there was an issue with his user ID.
The following day, Singh was called to a shop in the Transport Nagar area, where the branch manager along with the two employees reportedly took his mobile phone. They downloaded the bank’s mobile application and attempted to log in. Singh has alleged that immediately after logging into the app, his account balance showed a negative figure of ₹4.47 lakh.
He further claimed that the bank staff dismissed the issue as a “system error” and assured him that it would be rectified by the evening. However, instead of improving, the situation reportedly worsened. By the same evening, the account balance had plunged further to negative ₹5.07 lakh, intensifying his concerns.
Account Allegedly Pushed Beyond ₹20 Lakh Negative Balance
According to the complaint, the bank employees later informed him that his account had been frozen due to a cyber complaint. Singh has alleged that the actions of the bank staff were not accidental but part of a deliberate conspiracy. He claims that due to these transactions and manipulations, his account eventually reflected a negative balance exceeding ₹20 lakh.
Following his complaint, the matter was presented before a court, which found sufficient grounds to order the registration of a case. Police have since initiated an investigation and are examining transaction records, digital logs, and communication trails to ascertain the sequence of events and verify the allegations.
