Employees of some banks indulged in the illegal exchange of scrapped currency notes worth Rs 71.5 crore following the government’s decision to demonetise certain high-value currency notes on November 8, the government informed Parliament today.
“Banks have reported 14 cases (branches) where bank employees have been found involved in irregular exchange transaction of specified bank notes (SBNs) during the phase of demonetisation,” Minister of State for Finance Santosh Gangwar said in a written reply in Lok Sabha on Friday.
The highest amount of over Rs 46.29 crore was transacted through three branches of Axis Bank, in which three employees have been suspended, he informed the House.
Eight Dhanlaxmi Bank employees involved in six cases, helped offenders transact illegally Rs 22.67 crore, the MoS said.
Among the public sector banks, State Bank of Mysore reported illegal exchange of Rs 1.9 crore (two cases, four suspensions); Bank of Maharashtra Rs 54.90 lakh (two cases, five suspensions) and Syndicate Bank Rs 6 lakh in one case, the minister added.
Gangwar further said RBI has advised banks to take action to prevent, detect and contain malpractices or wrongdoing by staff in branches over exchange or deposit of banned notes.
Besides, banks have been asked to strengthen internal audit process including random visits and scrutiny to help detect such malpractices.
(With inputs from PTI)
