Three booked for procuring bank loan on spurious gold in Kullu

The police have booked three persons for fraud on a complaint of the manager of a private bank here stating that they had procured loans of about Rs 14.28 lakh by pledging fake gold as collateral. In the police complaint, the bank manager said that three persons, including a woman, had taken loans from the bank against spurious gold.

The complainant alleged that Thakur Das, a resident of Jarol village in Bandrol, took a loan of Rs 358,600, while Hariram of Jana village took a loan of Rs 537,700 and the bank granted a loan of Rs 532,400 to Lata Devi of Dalashni village. According to information, these people had taken loans from the bank in 2023 but did not pay installments and the gold that they had pledged as collateral turned out to be spurious

Questions are being raised over the functioning of the bank. According to financial experts, when a customer brings gold to the bank for a loan, the bank officials take it along with the customer to a goldsmith or call a jeweller. The goldsmith checks the gold for its purity and value before it is pledged with the bank. After this, a video of the previous metal is made and it is sealed. A bank doesn't extend loan if the gold is less than 18 carats.

It is not known whether the bank got the gold checked by a jeweller before giving loans in present case. The police are questioning bank officials. Kullu Additional SP Sanjeev Chauhan said that a case of fraud had been registered against the three persons and further investigation was underway.