The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has arrested an Reserve Bank of India (RBI) official for alleged illegal exchange of trashed notes. The agency has registered a total of 10 such cases, in which 14 public servants have been named and 16 arrests made so far.
“K. Michael, who is a senior special assistant with the RBI, had been deputed to transfer cash to the Kollegal branch of State Bank of Mysore. After the Central government announced demonetisation of Rs. 500 and Rs.1,000 notes, a friend sought help from him in converting Rs. 6 lakh in old notes into legal currency. In connivance with some bank officials, the accused facilitated the exchange through the branch,” a CBI officer said.
The CBI had earlier arrested Parashivamurthy, head cashier of the same branch, along with a private person for allegedly exchanging over Rs. 1.51 crore.
The agency on Tuesday also booked Ranjit Kumar Bhattacharya, a cashier with the Bank of Baroda, and other unknown bank officials of a Behala branch in Kolkata for allegedly exchanging over Rs. 50 lakh in demonetised currency. The case was detected during a surprise check which revealed a huge difference in the number of old currency received and the actual bank records.
Yet another head cashier with the State Bank of Bikaner in Rajasthan’s Dausa, Yogendra Singh Meena, has been arrested for allegedly facilitating the exchange of over Rs.1 crore in old notes.
Another major recent arrest is that of K.C. Veerendra, a local JD(S) politician who also runs a casino, on Monday after Rs. 5.7 crore in new notes was seized by the Income-Tax Department from his premises. The CBI has registered a case against unknown officials of the State Bank of India, State Bank of Mysore, ICICI Bank and the Kotak Mahindra Bank, for allegedly conspiring with Mr. Veerendra to change the notes.
The CBI has also taken legal action against officials of the Dhanlaxmi Bank and the Central Bank of India on the same allegations.
“Four cases each have been registered in Hyderabad and Bengaluru. While in Hyderabad, the cases have been registered for alleged illegal exchanges at post offices, the four cases in Bengaluru involve bank officials. The initial cumulative amount as per the cases registered till Tuesday stands at about Rs. 19 crore. The figure may go up during investigations,” the officer said.
