In the case of New India Cooperative Bank, Mumbai Police has registered a case against a person named Hitesh Mehta. Hitesh Mehta has been the General Manager and Head of the Account Department of New India Cooperative Bank.It is alleged that Hitesh Mehta, along with his associate, has embezzled Rs 122 crore from the Prabhadevi and Goregaon branches of the bank.
The case has been transferred to the Economic Offenses Wing (EOW) of Mumbai Police. A case has been registered against the accused under Section 316(5) 61(2) Code 2023. Earlier on Friday, RBI has removed the board of New India Cooperative Bank for 12 months.
Deposit and Withdrawal Ban for Rule Non-Compliance
On Thursday (January 13), RBI banned deposits and withdrawals in the bank due to non-compliance of rules. Now the bank will not be able to issue any new loan. Account holders are confused about when they will receive their money.
The Reserve Bank said that given the current cash position of the bank, it has been directed not to allow withdrawal of any amount from the savings bank or current accounts or any other account of the depositor. However, spending on some essentials like salaries, rent, and electricity bills is allowed.
RBI will continue to monitor the banking situation and modify these instructions to ensure the protection of depositors’ interests. These restrictions will remain in effect for six months from February 13, 2025.
Depositors will be able to take claims up to Rs 5 lakh
RBI said that eligible depositors will be entitled to receive deposit insurance claim amounts up to Rs 5 lakh from the Deposit Insurance and Credit Guarantee Corporation. At the end of March 2024, the cooperative bank had deposits of Rs 2436 crore.
Case Registered Earlier, PMC Bank was also banned
Earlier in 2019, when the PMC Bank scam came to light, in September 2019 the Reserve Bank abolished the Board of Directors of PMC Bank and also imposed various restrictions on the bank. Later RBI decided to run it as a small finance bank.
According to reports, the non-performing asset i.e. NPA of PMC Bank was 9%, but the bank showed it to be only 1%. PMC Bank showed bogus deposits of Rs 250 crore in its system. The bank gave large amounts of new loans to NPA companies like DHFL and HDIL. These loans were given in the names of relatives or partners of the directors of these companies. Fake deposits were shown to increase the loan book of the bank.
