Assam CID has arrested a Guwahati man in an alleged ₹40 lakh vehicle loan fraud involving multiple Canara Bank branches.
Who has been arrested in the case?
The Criminal Investigation Department of Assam Police arrested Ramen Saikia, also known as Jaan Saikia, from his residence in Guwahati on October 6. The arrest followed an investigation into the alleged fraudulent procurement of vehicle loans from Canara Bank branches in the greater Guwahati area.
According to a complaint lodged by the Senior Manager of Canara Bank’s Ulubari branch, four vehicle loans of ₹8 lakh each were sanctioned and disbursed between February and June 2023.
The loans were issued in the names of Juri Mahanta Saikia, Madhuparna Choudhary, Leline Rabha and Samudra Jyoti Kashyap.
How were the vehicle loans obtained?
Another ₹8 lakh vehicle loan was sanctioned and disbursed by Canara Bank’s Amingaon branch in the name of Jaan Saikia under the MSME Vahan Scheme. It was reportedly sanctioned for the purchase of a Bolero BS6 commercial vehicle.
The loan applications were allegedly supported by vehicle quotations obtained from Ramnarayan Shiprasad, an authorised Mahindra and Mahindra dealer in Jorhat.
The five loans together amounted to ₹40 lakh. The alleged irregularities surfaced after the loan accounts became non-performing assets, prompting an internal inquiry by the bank’s Administrative Office.
What did the bank’s inquiry find?
The internal inquiry detected several discrepancies in documents submitted with the loan applications, according to the complaint.
Investigators alleged that Saikia and his associates submitted forged vehicle quotations, Registration Certificate copies, insurance documents and other supporting papers to the Canara Bank branches concerned. The complaint alleged that these documents enabled the accused and his associates to secure vehicle loans totalling ₹40 lakh from multiple branches.
The findings led to a complaint and a subsequent investigation by the CID into the suspected financial fraud.
What is the CID investigating now?
Following the complaint, the CID began investigating the suspected loan fraud and arrested Saikia on October 6. The agency is continuing its inquiry to identify other individuals allegedly involved and determine the wider extent of the suspected fraud.
Investigators are also examining the alleged network behind the loan transactions and the documents used to obtain the money.
The case centres on allegations that multiple vehicle loans were secured using forged supporting records before the accounts subsequently turned into non-performing assets. The bank’s internal scrutiny of those accounts brought the alleged discrepancies to light and resulted in the matter being taken up by the CID.
The investigation remains focused on establishing how the documents were allegedly prepared and used, identifying others who may have participated in the transactions, and determining the full extent of the suspected loan fraud involving the Canara Bank branches.
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