New Delhi, Dec 28: There has been a significant surge in bank fraud cases in the first half this fiscal (April-September), with 18,461 incidents amounting to Rs 21,367 crore, according to a report by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI).

This is an almost 28 per cent rise in the number of cases (14,480 in April-September of FY24) and over eight-fold increase in the total amount (Rs 2,623 crore), compared to the same period last fiscal.

In FY 2023-24, the internet and card frauds accounted for 44.7 per cent of the total fraud amount and 85.3 per cent of the cases, said the Central Bank in its report on trend and progress of banking in India.

The report further stated that private sector banks reported 67.1 per cent of all fraud cases, while public sector banks faced the highest financial impact.

“In terms of number of frauds, the share of card and internet frauds was highest for all bank groups in 2023-24,” it mentioned.

When it comes to enforcement actions, total penalties imposed on banks reached Rs 86.1 crore in 2023-24.

“Instances of penalty imposed on regulated entities (REs) increased during 2023-24 across all bank groups, except FBs and small financial banks (SFBs). The total penalty amount more than doubled in 2023-24, led by public and private sector banks. The amount of penalty imposed on co-operative banks declined during the year, while there was an increase in instances of penalty imposition,” said the RBI report.

Frauds present multiple challenges for the financial system in the form of reputational risk, operational risk, business risk and erosion of customer confidence with financial stability implications.

“Going forward, there is a continuing need for banks to strengthen their risk management standards, IT governance arrangements and customer onboarding and transaction monitoring systems to check unscrupulous activities, including suspicious and unusual transactions,” said RBI.

The central bank is working on a public repository of digital lending apps to help customers verify the legitimacy of these services.

Kolkata, Dec 27: A report by the Central Forensic Science Laboratory (CFSL) over the ghastly rape and murder of a junior doctor of state-run R.G. Kar Medical College & Hospital in Kolkata in August this year, which surfaced earlier this week, has clearly stated that the confidentiality factor of the post-mortem process of the body of the victim was totally compromised and standard protocols were not followed during that process.

“Upon perusal of the videography of the PM Examination, it has been observed that there was presence of many persons inside the autopsy hall and few of them were taking photographs and videos on their personal mobiles which is against the standard and accepted protocol and practice for maintaining the confidentiality of the case and the dignity of the deceased,” the seventh point mention in the CSFL report read.

The CSFL report has maintained that the injury report of the deceased was basically prepared for pronunciation of death (i.e. brought dead) since it does not mention any detailed examination findings pertaining to injuries.

“After preparation of the Injury Certificate the body was sent for Postmortem examination. Perusal of the Magistrate inquest report shows that most of the findings were consistent with the PM report,” the CSFL report read.

The CFSL has suggested further research to be exactly sure whether the crime of rape and murder was accomplished by one or there were partners in the crime.

As per the contents of the report, while the possibility of involvement of just one accused cannot be ruled out, further research based on different past scientific reports by experts in similar cases can lead to the final conclusion on whether more than one person was involved in the crime.

Till now the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has filed just one charge sheet in the case where civic volunteer Sanjay Roy has been identified as “sole prime accused” in the crime of rape and murder.

On the morning of August 9 this year, the body of the victim was spotted at the seminar hall within the hospital premises of R.G. Kar. Accordingly, first the Kolkata Police and subsequently the CBI carried out the investigation considering the seminar hall as the “scene of crime”.

However, the report of the CFSL, which was submitted to the CBI clearly stated that there was no evident sign of a scuffle within the seminar room.

At the same time, the CFSL report has clearly stated that most of the wounds that were traced on the body of the victim was the result of her attempts to resist the rape.

Pune (Maharashtra), Dec 26: In a shocking case, the Pune Police have arrested a 54-year-old man for the alleged kidnapping, rape and murder of two minor girls in the Rajgurunagar area of the city.

The man, identified as Ajay Das, is accused of committing the heinous double crime with the two siblings aged nine and eight before he absconded, said a police official.

The dual crime occurred on Wednesday when the two girls were playing outside their home around noon, but later suddenly ‘disappeared’.

The family, which was keeping an eye on them, started a frantic search in the vicinity but failed to trace them and finally in the evening lodged a complaint with the Khed Police Station.

Responding promptly, Police Inspector Prabhakar More formed teams to launch a system effort to trace the two missing sisters but did not get any clues.

Late in the night, around 10.30 p.m., the police and the family inspected the two siblings’ room on the upper floors of their building and made the shocking discovery.

The two girls’ bodies were found at Das’ home, in a huge drum filled with water, with their heads below and their feet up, pointing at murder by forcible drowning.

As the discovery created a sensation in the vicinity, the case was handed over to a woman Investigation Officer Snehal Raje, said the officials, while the victims’ bodies were sent to the Sassoon Hospital in Pune for autopsies.

Cracking the whip, the Khed Police launched a manhunt for Das and apprehended him from his hideout in a shady lodging house early in the day (December 26) as he was packing up and preparing to flee out of Maharashtra.

This morning the grieving families along with other relatives, staged a sit-in dharna outside the police station, demanding that the culprit should be given the noose, and refused to accept the bodies of the two little girls.

As per preliminary questioning, Das is understood to have confessed to the double crime and also admitted that he had to kill them to suppress the matter secretly and also prevent them from screaming or attracting attention.

Although the accused was arrested by the police, the girls’ relatives gathered at the Rajgurunagar police station, saying they would not take possession of the bodies till they got justice.

The brutal kidnap-rape-double murder has evoked strong reactions from Nationalist Congress Party (SP) Working President and MLA Rohit R. Pawar, Shiv Sena (UBT)’s Sanjay Raut and Kishore Tiwari and local Congress leaders, who slammed the ruling Mahayuti for what they termed as ‘utter failure on the law-and-order front’.