SIDDIPET: Farmers belonging to Venkataraopet village have unearthed fraudulent activities that were being carried out by the employees of the Union Bank of India’s (UBI) Siddipet district headquarters branch. According to Venkataraopet ryots, several bank staffers created bogus documents in their name and took loans from the branch, leaving them with the burden of repaying these loans. Farmers allege the accused scammed scores of persons to the tune of about `2 crores.
Farmers allege that the plan was hatched by some bank officials and brokers who were working hand in glove. According to police and farmers, soon after a new manager took over the branch, the bank started issuing notices to Venkataraopet ryots, demanding the repayment of loans that they allegedly took from UBI. As per official documents, the bank has not been receiving monthly instalments from about 80 farmers since 2017.
As a result, the bank served notices on all these ryots, informing them that the officials would adopt loan recovery measures soon. The bank also suspended Rythu Bandhu and Aasara benefits to these farmers over default. When the concerned farmers approached the authorities stating that they haven’t taken any loans, the officials showed them the applications and other documents carrying the signatures of all of them. Noticing this, the ryots smelt forgery and lodged a complaint with the Siddipet (Rural) police.