Mullanpur bank fraud: Bank manager on the run with crores leaves trail of desperation
With weddings and home renovations lined up, victims grapple with shattered dreams and depleted life savings amid little hope of justice
It has been nine days since Gaurav Sharma, the manager of Axis Bank in Bansepur, Mullanpur, disappeared after stealing crores from customers’ accounts.
While police continue to grope in the dark regarding the accused’s location, the victims are in a tight spot over the loss of their entire savings.
To date, 42 complaints have been filed against the bank manager, alleging theft of a total of ₹10 crore from customers’ bank accounts.
Among the victims, several are preparing for weddings in the family, others are in the midst of home renovations and for some, these savings represent a lifetime of hard work. They have also expressed frustration, claiming that neither the police nor the bank have extended any assistance to them.
Gurmeet Singh, who is 70 years old, says he had invested around ₹80 lakh through fixed deposits in the bank. But now all that money is gone and he is left with only ₹6,000, especially in the face of his daughter’s wedding.
A female victim, the sole surviving heir of her family, expressed, “I am illiterate and not well-versed in banking. I had a fixed deposit of ₹9 lakh and some additional funds for my sustenance. I am also renovating my house. Now, I have only ₹200 left. I’m at a loss and don’t know where to turn.”
Sunny, another victim, shared,“My entire deposit of ₹20.74 lakh has been swiped. My sister’s marriage is scheduled for February 23 and 24. Left with no money, I am unsure how we will manage the wedding. We are contemplating taking a loan by putting our house as collateral. Even my friend, who had ₹60 lakh in his account, is left with only ₹402.”
Another victim, who wishes to remain anonymous, revealed that his account had been active since 2013, holding ₹15 lakh, while an additional ₹70 lakh were in his mother’s account. Shockingly, the manager removed their contact numbers linked to the bank accounts without their knowledge. Every time they requested a bank statement, the bank claimed the server was down.
Jinder Singh, a farmer stated, “I had deposited ₹1.5 crore in the bank, but the fraud completely emptied my account. That money was meant for my farmland.”
Meanwhile, according to sources, police had traced the absconding manager’s last location to Uttarakhand, following which his mobile phone has remained switched off. Police are suspecting that he fled to Nepal, along with his Nepalese cook, Rajesh, who is also missing. Before turning off his mobile phone, Sharma called his father on February 14 to apologise for his mistakes.
Inspector Simranjit Singh, the station house officer in Mullanpur, stated, “We haven’t received any new complaints. Police are actively investigating the case and have substantial leads. We will catch the manager soon.”
The bank manager, originally from Pathankot, reportedly embezzled approximately ₹1 crore in cash from the depositors, collaborating with the cashier. The branch’s cashier, 30-year-old Sujeet Kumar, arrested from the bank on February 15 for suspected complicity with the primary accused, stated during interrogation that the bank manager coerced him by threatening to provide a negative rating in the annual performance review if he refused to assist him.
