₹122 Crore New India Co-operative Bank Scam: Jharkhand Gang Promised Hitesh Mehta 50% Returns; ₹15 Cr Withdrawn Under Pre-Planned Strategy; Reveals EOW Probe

Mumbai: In the New India Co-operative Bank scam case, it has come to light that the Jharkhand-based gang had promised prime accused Hitesh Mehta a 50% profit on investment. Acting on a plan finalized during a meeting, Mehta withdrew ₹15 crore from the bank.

In a major development in the ₹122 crore New India Cooperative Bank scam, the Economic Offences Wing (EOW) of Mumbai Police has obtained several shocking revelations from accused Pawan Jaiswal, who was recently arrested from Lucknow.

During his interrogation, Jaiswal disclosed that he, along with co-accused Rajeev Ranjan Pandey and Ajay Singh Rathore, lured prime accused Hitesh Mehta into a fake investment scheme promising 50% returns and defrauded him of ₹15 crore.

According to EOW sources, the Jharkhand-based trio convinced Mehta that the money would be invested in a company’s CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility) fund and, in return, he would receive over ₹22 crore as profit. Tempted by this promise, Mehta allegedly withdrew ₹15 crore from the bank and handed it over to the gang.

After receiving the money, Pandey and Rathore split the amount equally. Pandey gave ₹3.5 crore to Jaiswal. However, Jaiswal has not been able to clearly explain how he used the funds, prompting further questioning.

EOW is now actively searching for another wanted accused, Ajay Rathore.

Sources further revealed that before the ₹15 crore was withdrawn, a secret meeting was held in Mumbai between Hitesh Mehta, Ulanath Arunachalam, Manohar Arunachalam, and the Jharkhand gang. In that meeting, a detailed criminal plan was laid out for siphoning off funds from the New India Cooperative Bank, investing the cash in the market, and generating returns.

According to the plan, Mehta and Arunachalam withdrew ₹15 crore in cash from the bank and handed it over at Arunachalam’s Mumbai office to Pandey, Rathore, and Jaiswal. EOW suspects this transfer to private individuals was part of a broader criminal conspiracy. Mehta had initially approached a group from Satara, known for such shady dealings, but when negotiations fell through, he turned to the Jharkhand gang.

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The gang claimed they would channel the money into companies with active CSR funds, which would in return offer a 50% profit. However, EOW is now investigating whether any such investments were genuinely made or if the funds were diverted elsewhere. So far, investigators believe that Mehta has not received a single rupee in return from the Jharkhand gang. Further investigation is ongoing.