Suresh Gopi suggests probe against actors an attempt to divert focus from Sabarimala issue
Palakkad (PTI): Union Minister Suresh Gopi suggested on Friday that the probe against film personalities was an attempt to divert attention from the Sabarimala gold-plating controversy.
Responding to questions during a public interaction at Akathethara in Palakkad, Gopi said, "Two film actors have been put before the Kerala public for judgment to play down the Sabarimala gold issue".
He, however, he did not specify names of the actors or case.
"The National Investigation Agency (NIA) and Enforcement Directorate (ED) are intensifying their probe. As a Union minister, I should not comment further," he said.
Gopi added that such instances were not unusual. "Whenever an incident arises that puts the government in the dock, there is a trend of tarnishing shining personalities through police action. More such stories will come," he remarked.
The actor-turned-politician has been holding similar interaction programmes across the state for the past month. Some of his earlier comments, including those related to the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) to be started in Alappuzha, have drawn sharp political criticism.
Currently, actors Dulquer Salmaan, Prithviraj Sukumaran, and Amith Chakalakkal are under the scanner of Customs and the ED in connection with the alleged smuggling of luxury cars from Bhutan.
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3 officials of private banks arrested in Gujarat in Rs 2,500 crore cyber fraud; 20 held so far
Rajkot (PTI): Three officials of leading private banks were arrested for their alleged involvement in a Rs 2,500-crore cyber fraud racket in Gujarat's Rajkot district, bringing the number of those held so far in the case to 20, police said on Monday.
Those arrested were identified as Maulik Kamani, a personal manager at Yes Bank in Padadhari; Kalpesh Dangariya, a manager at Axis Bank in Jamnagar; and Anurag Baldha, a personal banker with HDFC Bank, Rajkot (Rural) Superintendent of Police Vijay Gurjar said.
Dangariya and Baldha were previously employed with Yes Bank, he added.
Kamani allegedly assisted the earlier arrested accused in opening and managing suspicious accounts. He also helped bypass banking alerts triggered by high-value transactions by submitting additional documentation to keep accounts active, the SP said.
Kamani was allegedly involved in cash withdrawals that were later routed through hawala channels (illegal money transfer system), supported by digital evidence recovered from his mobile device, he added.
Dangariya is accused of facilitating the opening of fraudulent accounts using fake or misrepresented identities, police said.
He also assisted in structuring documentation, including Agricultural Produce Market Committee (APMC)-related papers, to prevent transactions from being flagged as suspicious, they said.
On the other hand, Baldha opened new accounts after verification and certification processes as part of the racket, Gurjar informed.
All the three accused are in police custody, while others are in jail under judicial remand, SP said.
So far, police have identified 85 bank accounts linked to the racket with 535 complaints filed on the cyber crime portal.
The total transaction linked to the cyber fraud exceeds Rs 2,500 crore, police said.
The earlier fraud amount was pegged by police at Rs 1,500 crore.
