Mumbai: The Mumbai police’s economic offences wing (EOW) has searched the residence of New India Cooperative Bank’s former chairman Hiren Bhanu in connection with the embezzlement of Rs 122 crore at the lender, officials said on Wednesday.

EOW Recovers Several Documents

During the search, EOW recovered several documents, which police are examining, an official said.

The house search was conducted in the Malabar Hill area of south Mumbai, where Hiren Bhanu and his wife Gauri Bhanu stayed in a rented flat, an official said. Gauri previously held the position of vice chairman at the bank.

The couple also own a flat at Nepean Sea Road which they have rented out, an official said. Both are wanted accused in the Rs 122-crore embezzlement case.

The EOW team is identifying the couple’s properties and also ascertaining whether they were acquired with the proceeds of the crime, he said.

About The Lie Detector Test

Meanwhile, the agency will conduct a lie detector test on Hitesh Mehta, former general manager and head of the accounts of the bank, on March 11, the official said.

Mehta is not cooperating and is hiding some important facts concerning the case, due to which he has not given his consent for the test, he said. But the court has permitted the police to conduct the forensic psychological test on Mehta, the official said.

The EOW is probing what prompted the Reserve Bank of India’s inspection team to visit the bank in February 2025.

As per the balance sheets of the bank, as of March 31, 2019, it had Rs 33.71 crore in cash which rose to Rs 99 crore on March 31, 2020. It’s almost a three-fold jump, he said.

On March 31, 2021, the figure further increased to 194 crore and it was Rs 105 crore in 2022. At some point in the current financial year, the amount rose to even Rs 152 crore. Police are examining why the RBI team conducted an inspection last month and not in some of the previous years, the official said.

So far, police have arrested four persons in connection with the embezzlement, and four accused are still at large, he added.

New Delhi, March 6: Congress leader Udit Raj on Thursday claimed that Samajwadi Party (SP) chief Akhilesh Yadav was not wrong in extending support to its Maharashtra MLC Abu Azmi.

The Congress leader made the remark while speaking to media on various issues including Pakistan-Occupied Kashmir (PoK), India’s foreign policy, Article 370, and Bihar politics.

Substantiating Akhilesh Yadav’s support to Abu Azmi who glorified Mughal ruler Aurangzeb, Udit Raj claimed that in the Peshwa Empire, the plight of Dalits and women was miserable.

Claiming that Muslims used to fight for Chhatrapati Shivaji and Hindus used to fight for emperor Aurangzeb, he said singling out any ruler of a specific community is not right.

Dwelling on External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar’s recent statement in London that Pakistan will have to return PoK and revocation of Article 370 was the first step in that direction, Udit Raj said that the leader’s remark was not completely right.

Denying the positive changes in Jammu and Kashmir, he said: “When Article 370 was revoked, it was said that the move would break the backbone of terrorism and attract investment in Jammu and Kashmir leading to its development. However, nothing happened.”

Dwelling on the border dispute between India and China over Aksai Chin, Udit Raj further said, “Union Home Minister Amit Shah used to say will ‘sacrifice life for Aksai Chin’. But nothing happened and China developed roads on it.”

Claiming that the country’s international diplomacy has failed, Udit Raj said: “In Canada and Scotland, our ambassadors were attacked. A gangster in Sabarmati jail is conversing with people in Pakistan. Now, Khalistani extremists breached security and tried to attack Jaishankar.”

Blaming the BJP for the JD(U)’s reducing strength in the House, the Congress leader said: “The JD(U) earlier had 120 seats in the Legislative Assembly but this number now has been slashed to 45.”

Claiming that the BJP strengthened the Lok Janshakti Party (LJP) and weakened JD(U), he said that the Nitish Kumar-led party will soon meet the same fate as the Akali Dal in Punjab.

Dwelling on reports that the new Delhi government has fixed the criteria that women who have an annual income of less than Rs 3 lakh will get the benefits of the Mahila Samriddhi Scheme, Udit Raj said the BJP had promised to provide the financial aid on March 8.

He said: “We will adopt a wait-and-watch approach on the government’s move till March 8.”

Mumbai: Four police constables attached to Dharavi Police Station were suspended on Thursday after a video of them allegedly accepting bribes from hawkers surfaced on social media.

According to officials, the suspended constables were deployed as beat marshals on patrolling vehicles, responsible for taking action against illegal roadside eateries and food stalls. However, instead of enforcing the law, they were caught on camera extorting money from hawkers.

Following the video’s viral spread, senior police officials initiated an internal inquiry and ordered their immediate suspension.