Cyber-fraud gang duping bank customers on pretext of KYC updates busted, 4 held: Delhi Police
New Delhi (PTI): The Delhi Police has busted a major multi-state cyber-fraud syndicate allegedly involved in duping bank customers on the pretext of updating their KYC details and arrested four men from Jharkhand and West Bengal, an official said on Saturday.
The accused have been identified as Shiv Kumar Ravidas (22), Sanjay Ravidas (33), Dinesh Ravidas (29) and Shubham Kumar Barnwal (25), he said.
"The syndicate members posed as bank officials and created a sense of urgency among the victims regarding KYC updates. They allegedly induced people to install malicious APK files on their mobile phones, which enabled them to gain unauthorised remote access to banking applications and personal financial data," the senior police officer said.
Police said the accused used the compromised credentials to fraudulently avail loans, transfer funds into mule accounts and withdraw the cheated money through ATMs, point-of-sale (POS) machines and other banking channels.
The case came to light following a complaint from a Sagarpur resident who reported receiving calls and messages from unknown persons impersonating bank officials in December 2025.
She was persuaded to click on a malicious link sent via an online messaging application. Subsequently, she received SMS alerts about a loan of Rs 8.33 lakh being processed on her credit card and unauthorised transactions amounting to Rs 5 lakh and Rs 3.3 lakh. She denied authorising any such transactions, following which a case was registered.
Police found that the accused were operating from areas near Jamtara in Jharkhand and frequently shifting locations between Jharkhand and West Bengal to evade arrest.
Coordinated raids led to the apprehension of three accused from the Nirsa area of Jharkhand's Dhanbad district while they were allegedly calling and targeting victims. The fourth accused was arrested from Hooghly in West Bengal.
During the operation, police seized 10 mobile phones, 13 SIM cards, clothing allegedly used during ATM withdrawals and digital evidence, including malicious APK files, phone data, Excel sheets containing bank details and transaction messages.
Preliminary interrogation revealed that different members had specific roles, including procuring APK files and mule accounts, making calls to victims, handling bank accounts and withdrawing cash, police said.
Further investigation is underway.
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Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah accuses EC of ‘bias’, defends state guarantee schemes ahead of bypolls
Bengaluru (PTI): Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah has accused the EC of "double standards" and "bias" after it sought details on the state’s guarantee schemes in Davanagere and Bagalkot districts, where bypolls are scheduled for Thursday.
In a post on 'X' on Wednesday, Siddaramaiah said the Election Commission of India had asked the Karnataka government for information on fund releases under five ongoing guarantee schemes in the constituencies going to polls.
The polls were necessitated following the deaths of senior Congress MLAs Shamanur Shivashankarappa and H Y Meti, respectively.
The schemes are Gruha Jyothi, which provides 200 units of free electricity to every household; Gruha Lakshmi, offering Rs 2,000 to women heading families; and Anna Bhagya, supplying 10 kg of rice per month to each member of BPL families.
In addition, Yuva Nidhi grants Rs 3,000 to unemployed graduates and Rs 1,500 to unemployed diploma holders aged 18–25 for two years, while Shakti enables women to travel free of charge within Karnataka on government non-luxury buses.
Siddaramaiah alleged that the ECI had remained silent when similar cash transfer schemes were announced in Maharashtra and Bihar ahead of elections, calling the scrutiny of Karnataka’s schemes a "clear case of bias".
"In states like Maharashtra and Bihar, cash transfer schemes were announced or fast-tracked just before elections, directly benefiting voters. Yet the ECI remained silent. This is not neutrality—it is complicity," he said.
The CM accused the BJP and NDA governments of "a double standard", noting that when they act, the ECI "looks the other way", but when Karnataka fulfils its promises, it faces "intense scrutiny".
He added that targeting the state’s guarantee schemes is "not just political but anti-poor, anti-women, and anti-Karnataka."
Siddaramaiah clarified that these schemes were not launched in connection with the bypolls but are ongoing programmes implemented as part of the Congress government’s commitments from the 2023 Assembly elections.
Funds are transferred regularly to beneficiaries in a transparent and structured manner, he added.
"The guarantees are part of governance—a direct investment in human dignity, household stability, and economic participation, not inducement," he said.
He also accused the BJP of "hypocrisy", saying that while it criticises Karnataka’s schemes as "freebies", it rolls out similar programmes in states it governs.
"The Karnataka model has set a benchmark for the country. What is deeply concerning, however, is the ECI’s selective approach," Siddaramaiah added.
