NEW DELHI: In a significant breakthrough in a case linked to a high-value bank fraud case involving over Rs 12.63 crore, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has arrested proclaimed offender Nasreen Taj, who had been on the run for nearly seven years, officials said on Monday.
According to the officials, the arrest was made after sustained efforts made by CBI investigators, who combined advanced technological tools with traditional investigation techniques to locate the accused.
They said that the case was originally registered on April 15, 2009, against nine accused, including Asadullah Khan, the then Branch Manager of Syndicate Bank, Mandya Branch, and his wife Nasreen Taj. The accused had allegedly conspired to cheat the Syndicate Bank through fraudulent loans and misuse of funds.
A senior CBI official said, “Nasreen Taj was arrested from Bengaluru on July 19, 2025, where she had been living under a fake identity as ‘Ms. Salma’.”
Nasreen Taj, who had no independent income, availed loans including a Temporary Overdraft of Rs 120 lakhs and farm loans worth Rs 55 lakhs, the official said, adding that instead of using the funds for agriculture, she allegedly diverted them to repay the overdraft, violating loan conditions.
The CBI had filed a charge sheet in the case on October 12, 2010, naming her as one of the key conspirators. However, she failed to appear for trial in 2019, following which multiple non-bailable warrants were issued. On November 27, 2021 a Special Court in Bengaluru declared her a proclaimed offender and ordered the attachment of her properties.
To evade arrest, she severed ties with family, changed her name, and constantly shifted locations, the official said, adding that the agency using digital footprint analysis, advanced surveillance tools, and ground-level investigations, successfully tracked her down.
She was produced before the Competent Court in Bengaluru and remanded to judicial custody, the official said, adding that the trial in the case against her will now proceed, after being stalled for years.