The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has apprehended the Branch Manager and Credit Officer of Bank of Baroda’s Koireepur branch in Uttar Pradesh’s Sultanpur district. The arrest follows accusations of soliciting and receiving a bribe from a loan beneficiary. Swarnim Srivastava, the Branch Manager, and Pushpak Chaudhary, the Credit Officer, both stationed at the Bank of Baroda’s Koireepur branch, have been identified in this case.
A case was filed by the CBI on July 13 after a complaint alleged that the accused officials were seeking undue benefits for the disbursement of funds under a government-backed loan scheme. The complainant had been granted a Rs 5 lakh loan under the Chief Minister Yuva Udyami Yojana at the Koireepur branch. While the term loan portion had been released, the overdraft facility, a part of the loan package, was pending disbursement.
The CBI claimed that the Branch Manager and Credit Officer demanded a bribe of Rs 45,000 from the complainant to expedite the release of the overdraft component of the approved loan. After verifying the complaint, the CBI set a trap on July 14. During the operation, the Credit Officer was caught allegedly accepting Rs 35,000 from the complainant. The agency asserted that this money was received in collusion with the Branch Manager.
Both officials were subsequently apprehended and taken into custody by the CBI. They were presented before the competent court in Lucknow, with further investigations ongoing as per the CBI’s statement.
