SRINAGAR: A court in Shopian has rejected the bail applications of five HDFC Bank officials arrested in connection with a large-scale financial fraud case being investigated by the Economic Offences Wing (EOW) of the Crime Branch, Jammu and Kashmir.
The officials were arrested by the EOW Kashmir in a case registered last year and are presently lodged in judicial custody at Central Jail Srinagar, officials said on Friday.
The accused have been identified as Adil Ayoub Ganai of Memendar Shopian, presently residing at Hamza Colony Baghat-e-Kanipora Nowgam; Irfan Majeed Zargar of Sheikh Mohalla Bonigam Shopian; Mubashir Hussain Sheikh of Karena Kulgam; Zaid Manzoor of Dagerpora Khannabal Anantnag; and Javaid Ahmad Bhat of Below Rajpora Pulwama. They had approached the court seeking bail.
Officials said Additional Public Prosecutor Waseem Ahmad Shah, appearing for the Economic Offences Wing Kashmir, strongly opposed the bail pleas before the Court of Chief Judicial Magistrate Shopian. After hearing detailed arguments and examining the case records, the court rejected the applications.
The case has been registered under Sections 316(5), 318(4), 336(3), 340(2) and 61(2) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), along with Section 66(C) of the Information Technology Act at Police Station EOW Kashmir.
According to officials, the fraud surfaced after a written complaint alleged financial irregularities at the HDFC Bank branch in Shopian. The case was initially probed by Shopian Police before being transferred to the Economic Offences Wing of the Crime Branch for further investigation.
During the preliminary investigation, police collected records from the bank and recorded statements of concerned persons. The probe revealed a discrepancy of nearly ₹1.35 crore between the physical cash available in the branch vault and the balance reflected in the system ledger. (Agencies)
