New India Co-Operative Bank scam: Cops may declare bank’s acting chair, husband as absconders

Another accused, Unnatham Arunachalam, has already been declared as absconding

The Economic Offences Wing (EOW) of Mumbai Police, investigating the New India Cooperative Bank scam, is set to declare the bank's acting chairman Gauri Bhanu and her husband, former vice-chairman Hiren Bhanu, as absconders after confirming that they have fled abroad.

According to sources, Hiren Bhanu left the country on January 26 and landed in a Gulf nation nearly two weeks before the RBI's inspection. His wife, Gauri Bhanu, fled to Thailand on February 10, just two days before the inspection. Officials now suspect that the couple may have been tipped off about the scam and the RBI's scrutiny. The investigation has also revealed that several family members fled the country on February 14, the day the FIR was registered.

The EOW investigation has revealed that the main accused, Hitesh Mehta, paid '26 crore to Hiren Bhanu and '2 crore to his wife, Gauri Bhanu. The EOW is probing the disappearance of '122 crore from the cash vault of NIC Bank. "During the investigation, senior bank officials came under scrutiny, and a lookout circular was issued. However, we later discovered that the acting chairman and her husband had already fled the country. Since they were also beneficiaries of the scam, we suspect Mehta acted in connivance with the Bhanu couple," an official said.

Meanwhile, the EOW has already declared another accused, Unnatham Arunachalam alias Arun Bhai, as absconding and announced a reward for any information about him. His son, Manohar Arunachalam, has already been arrested in the case.