New Delhi: Three days after several individuals—primarily farmers who sold their land for the construction of Jewar Airport—alleged their “bank accounts and fixed deposits” at a Greater Noida-based Punjab National Bank (PNB) branch were “emptied out”, the bank has officially acknowledged the “financial irregularities”, saying three claims have been settled.
Punjab National Bank, in a statement Friday, said that it has taken “serious cognisance of the complaints regarding alleged financial irregularities” involving certain customer Fixed and Savings Bank deposit accounts at its Greater Noida branch.
“The matter is being examined on priority and the bank is extending full cooperation to the authorities concerned and is taking necessary steps to verify the facts, assess the extent of the reported discrepancies and address the concerns of affected customers,” it said.
Further, PNB has clarified that three claims amounting to Rs 43 lakh have been settled so far.
“The bank assures its customers that all genuine claims will be honoured,” read the PNB statement. The bank added that it maintains a zero-tolerance policy towards fraud, financial irregularities and misconduct, and that stern action will be taken against those found responsible, in accordance with applicable rules and procedures.
“The bank remains committed to safeguarding customer interests, upholding the highest standards of operational integrity, and continually strengthening its internal controls and monitoring mechanisms to reinforce safeguards and prevent the recurrence of such incidents,” it said.
At least 28 individuals, mostly farmers, went to Gautam Buddha Nagar Police this week, alleging that years of savings worth lakhs and crores, had suddenly vanished. None had received a text message or any other alert about it, nor had any of them signed a document, they alleged, saying they realised the money was missing only after seeing their transaction records.
The Gautam Buddha Nagar police launched an investigation after an FIR was registered Wednesday at Beta-02 police station against unidentified bank employees for criminal breach of trust under Section 316(5) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita.
The police are investigating whether the money was stolen from the bank, went missing due to some other irregularity, or was siphoned.
Protests continue
Aggrieved farmers have been protesting outside the Greater Noida PNB branch for four days now. Most of them, they said, had saved for building homes or their children’s weddings. The police have registered a First Information Report and investigation has begun.
Farmers told ThePrint that they would continue their protest even as more farmers continued to come forward with their concerns. A senior police had told ThePrint Wednesday that as of then, around 18 individuals had come forward stating the loss of Rs 16 crore. On Thursday, 10 more individuals came forward, reporting the loss of Rs 4 crore, the officer said.
Another senior police officer told ThePrint that the police are still collecting evidence. “More people are coming forward and reporting that their money has gone missing. The bank is also conducting an enquiry,” said the officer.
(Edited by Nardeep Singh Dahiya)
Also Read: Fixed deposits, bank accounts emptied: Greater Noida villagers allege Rs 16 cr PNB fraud, FIR lodged