New Delhi, Nov 18: The Supreme Court on Tuesday issued notices to the Union government, Anil Ambani, and Reliance Communications Ltd. (RCOM) on a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) seeking a court-monitored probe into an alleged “large-scale, organised bank fraud” perpetrated by the company and its group entities.

A Bench led by Chief Justice of India (CJI) B.R. Gavai and comprising Justice K Vinod Chandran sought responses from all respondents within three weeks.

The plea seeks the constitution of a Special Investigation Team (SIT) comprising officers from the CBI and Enforcement Directorate (ED), contending that only a judicially supervised probe can ensure a “comprehensive, coordinated, and transparent investigation” into the alleged offences.

As per the PIL, the FIR registered by the CBI in August this year covers only a fraction of the financial irregularities despite extensive material pointing to diversion of funds, round-tripping, fictitious transactions, and systematic misuse of bank loans by RCOM and its group companies.

The plea alleged that the State Bank of India (SBI), the lead lender in a consortium that extended Rs. 31,580 crore between 2013 and 2017 waited five years to lodge an FIR despite being in possession of a detailed forensic audit report since 2020.

“Despite being in possession of the 2020 Forensic Audit Report, based on which the complaint was filed which contains detailed issues regarding diversion, evergreening, fictitious transactions, and use of shell entities, the bank chose to take no statutory action until August 2025, a delay that cannot be explained without examining whether officers acted in collusion or with deliberate intent to shield the borrower group,” the plea stated.

“The five-year delay in filing the FIR by the bank clearly indicates involvement of bank officials and other public servants whose conduct enabled, concealed, or facilitated the fraud,” it added.

The petition, relying on multiple materials, including, SBI and RBI forensic audits, the Grant Thornton CIRP report, technical analyses, news investigations, and the Cobrapost report, argued that the ADA Group engaged in a “sustained, organised and coordinated scheme” to siphon public money.

“These reports uniformly demonstrate diversion of funds, round-tripping, misuse of external borrowings, fabrication of accounting entries, and operation of shell entities,” the plea alleged.

It further stated that suspected shell companies such as Netizen Engineering Pvt Ltd and Kunj Bihari Developers Pvt Ltd “were found to be non-existent at their registered addresses”, demonstrating a deliberate corporate structure created to siphon and launder public funds.

Despite searches at over 35 locations and alleged frauds aggregating to more than Rs. 20,000 crore, the PIL stated that “no arrests have been made, no assets have been seized, and no accounts have been frozen.”

“This indicates difficulty on part of the investigating agencies and necessitates judicial supervision,” the plea contended, adding that a fraud of such magnitude “involving public money and public institutions cannot be investigated in a piecemeal manner.”

The PIL also sought the constitution of an expert committee under the supervision of the Supreme Court to recommend structural reforms in banking and regulatory oversight.

Mumbai: The Kurla Government Railway Police (GRP) arrested a 34-year-old man for allegedly sexually harassing a female doctor at Mulund railway station.

The incident occurred on November 15. He has been remanded in police custody for two days by a magistrate court.

According to the GRP, the complainant is a 24-year-old homeopathy doctor, resides in Dadar West. On November 15, between 1 am and 1.10 am, she was waiting on platform number 2 of Mulund railway station for a train when the incident took place. The accused, Mahesh Pakhre, allegedly stalked her and kept staring at her. He also flashed her. The woman raised an alarm, following which the police caught hold of Pakhre.

She later filed a complaint with the Kurla GRP. Following this, the Kurla GRP registered a case against him under Section 74 (criminal assault or use of criminal force against a woman with the intent or knowledge that it is likely to outrage her modesty) and Section 75(1)(iii) (sexual harassment) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita. 

Pakhre works as a share market trader and resides in the Rabale area of Navi Mumbai.

Kalyan: In a major pre-election crackdown, the Kalyan Crime Branch has arrested a habitual offender involved in the sale of illegal firearms and sharp weapons. The operation, executed with precision amid heightened security concerns during the election season, has exposed a troubling link between criminal activities and suspected political backing.

According to officials, the Crime Branch arrested Roshan Jha, a repeat offender with multiple criminal cases registered in Ulhasnagar. Acting on specific intelligence received by Assistant Police Sub-Inspector Dattaram Bhosale, officers were alerted that a man was attempting to sell country-made pistols and other dangerous weapons in the Dombivli area.

Following the tip-off, a team led by Police Officer Sarjerao Patil laid a strategic trap at Gokuldham Tower in Desale Pada, Dombivli (East), where the accused was believed to be residing. Upon raiding his residence, police recovered a significant cache of weapons.

Weapons Recovered During Raid
The seized items include:

Three country-made pistols

Three live cartridges

Two magazines

One dagger

Two knives

Two swords

Officials confirmed that Jha was taken into custody immediately after the recovery. Preliminary investigations reveal that he has seven serious cases registered across multiple police stations in Ulhasnagar, further reinforcing his reputation as a hardened criminal.

What has raised additional concern is emerging information suggesting the accused may have been receiving political patronage. Sources indicate that certain local political figures could be providing protection to Jha a possibility police have not ruled out. Senior officers have initiated a detailed probe to determine the extent of any political involvement.

The Crime Branch is now intensifying its investigation to trace the source of the arms and identify prospective buyers. Key questions under scrutiny include whether the weapons were intended to influence or disrupt the upcoming elections.

A senior officer stated that the crackdown is part of a broader effort to maintain law and order during the election period. “We will not hesitate to act against anyone involved, irrespective of their political connections,” the official said.