"I hold the bank officials responsible for his death."
A 35-year-old Indian man from Uttar Pradesh committed suicide after he learnt that a fake account had been opened in his name in 2015 in a private bank.
The fake bank account was being used for committing fraud worth nearly Rs. 1 crore (£99,000).
Bank officials allegedly forced the man to deposit the money to clear the dues and he did not get any help from the bank manager.
His wife has submitted a written complaint to Khuthar Police Station, but an FIR is yet to be registered by the police.
The man, identified as Ramashish Kumar, was a mason and used to live with his wife Pramila Devi, and daughter Kajal in the Khuthar town in Shahjahanpur district.
His wife alleged that two men from the bank came to their house on December 20, 2021, and told her husband about a bank account that has been active since 2015 in his name.
Pramila said: “They said he had outstanding dues worth several lakhs.”
Pramila Devi added that her husband tried to convince the recovery agents of the bank that he had never opened an account.
She added: “On Tuesday, the recovery agent humiliated my husband at a market and threatened to send him to jail.
“He was really worried and was saying that the outstanding amount is nearly a crore.
“He killed himself on Wednesday because he was worried and I hold the bank officials responsible for his death.”
Khuthar Station also plans to seek information from the bank to gather details of the account that Ramashish Kumar was falsely linked to, alongside filing an FIR.
Khuthar Station house officer (SHO) Dhananjay Singh said:
“We are in the process of registering an FIR under section 306 (abetment of suicide) against the bank manager and one other based on the complaint of his wife.
“The matter will be investigated and the guilty will be brought to book.”
As millennials are desperate for employment, people are taking different approaches to make money – including making fake bank accounts.
Whilst the total amount of fraud reported by banks in India showed a drop in 2020-21, there is an emerging trend of private banks reporting a larger number of frauds.
These frauds are almost all related to card and internet banking.
According to the latest data released by the Reserve Bank of India, commercial banks reported Rs 1.38 trillion worth of frauds in 2020-21, as compared to Rs 1.85 trillion in the previous year.