A serious banking security concern has emerged in Rajasthan’s Alwar city after cheques were allegedly stolen from the drop box of Yes Bank’s Bhagat Singh Circle branch and one of them was reportedly cloned to withdraw ₹2.40 lakh in cash from a Bank of India branch in the same area. The alleged fraud came to light after the original cheque bounced, following which customer Vinod Kumar discovered that money had already been withdrawn using another cheque carrying the same number.
Vinod Kumar, a resident of the Company Bagh area and a trading businessman, said he deposited two cheques at Yes Bank on July 17, 2026. One cheque, worth ₹5 lakh, was cleared the same day. The second cheque, worth ₹2.40 lakh, allegedly remained with a bank employee on the first day and was placed in the drop box the following day. It subsequently bounced.
Money Withdrawn Using Another Cheque
After learning about the bounced cheque, Kumar contacted the bank. According to him, Yes Bank employees informed him that ₹2.40 lakh had already been withdrawn in cash from Bank of India using another cheque bearing the same number.
A subsequent examination allegedly indicated that the cheque used at Bank of India was a cloned version of the original. Kumar’s family claimed that the details on the original cheque had been filled in English, while the alleged cloned cheque contained details written in Hindi. They further alleged that the cloned document did not carry the bank’s security watermark.
Despite these alleged discrepancies, the cheque was reportedly accepted and ₹2.40 lakh was paid in cash.
CCTV Footage Shows Two Suspects, Claim
During the inquiry, CCTV footage from Yes Bank reportedly showed two young men near the bank’s ATM area on July 18. According to the allegations, one of them entered the bank while the other remained outside. The two are suspected of stealing seven to eight cheques from the drop box.
On July 20, one of the allegedly cloned cheques was reportedly used to withdraw ₹2.40 lakh from Bank of India. At least two similar cases have reportedly surfaced in Alwar city so far. While ₹2.40 lakh was withdrawn from one account, another account allegedly suffered a withdrawal of ₹20,000.
The developments have raised concerns over whether the stolen cheques were targeted as part of a wider operation. Investigators are expected to examine CCTV footage, transaction records and the movement of the stolen documents to determine whether the incidents are connected.
Bank of India Accused of Negligence
Himansh Gupta, the customer’s son, accused Bank of India employees of failing to properly verify the cheque before making the cash payment. He claimed that the alleged cloned cheque lacked the bank’s security watermark and that the discrepancies should have prompted additional verification.
The family further alleged that the bank did not contact the original account holder before allowing the withdrawal of such a substantial amount. They also claimed that the person collecting the cash was not asked to provide adequate identification.
The allegations have not been independently established, and a detailed response from the bank was not immediately available.
The victims said they submitted a written complaint to the Kotwali police station on July 29. They alleged that a police team from the office of the Deputy Superintendent of Police also visited the bank three times during the inquiry, but no further action followed.
Meanwhile, the victims have accused bank officials of pressuring them to withdraw their police complaint. According to their claim, officials assured them that they would help recover the money through an insurance claim and urged them not to pursue a police case.
The allegation of pressure is also yet to be independently verified.
The latest case has also brought attention to an earlier alleged incident involving the same drop box. In 2022, around 13 cheques were reportedly stolen from the Yes Bank drop box. The cheques were allegedly deposited by parents who had visited the branch to pay fees for students of Mount Litera G School.
The latest allegations have raised questions about the security of bank drop boxes, the time taken to process deposited cheques, CCTV monitoring and verification procedures before large cash withdrawals.
Investigators will now have to establish who allegedly stole the cheques, how the cloned documents were prepared, whether the remaining stolen cheques were also used and whether anyone inside or outside the banking system assisted the alleged fraud. The investigation will also determine whether the two reported withdrawals are connected and whether a larger cheque-cloning network was operating in Alwar.
