Maharashtra: Hotelier accuses private bank of charging him higher interest on loan; 1 arrested

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A staffer of Kotak Mahindra Bank was arrested by Pune rural police in connection with a case filed by a Lonavala-based hotelier accusing the private lender of charging higher than the promised rate interest on a loan he had taken in 2013, an official said on Monday.

While hotelier Ashok Purohit has named seven people, including Kotak Mahindra CEO Uday Kotak, in his complaint, Inspector Sitaram Dubal of Lonavala police station said the latter had no role to play in the case.

"The complainant had obtained a loan of over 62 lakh from the bank in 2013. He claims he was promised an interest rate at 10.30 per cent but the bank charged him 12 per cent, which led to him being allegedly duped to the tune of Rs 20-25 lakh," Dubal said.

The case was registered on March 8 under IPC sections 420 (cheating ), 467 (forgery of valuable security), 468 (forgery for purpose of cheating), and 471 (using as genuine a forged document or electronic record), he said.

One Alankar Khere from the bank's loan department was arrested on Saturday and further investigation was underway, he added.

Refuting the allegations, the bank's spokesperson Rohit Rao issued a statement saying, "A borrower at our Lonavala Branch has filed an FIR naming Kotak Mahindra Bank officials at the Lonavala Police Station wherein he has made false allegations in the context of his borrowing transactions. The bank acted in accordance with the prevailing law and processes at all times. We are cooperating with the local authorities."

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