Bombay High Court directs bank to deposit 31,690 Wipro shares after unauthorized transfer from woman’s account
Following a Bombay High Court directive, IDBI Bank has assured it will restore 31,690 shares of Wipro India Ltd—valued at over Rs 75 lakh—to the demat account of a 48-year-old NRI woman who lost the shares due to unauthorized transactions in 2019, reported indianexpress.com.
Bank to deposit shares in new demat account; police probe against officials to continue
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The woman, originally from Mulund, had opened a demat account with IDBI in 2004 to hold shares issued for her long-term service
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However, in 2019, she discovered that a third party had gained illegal access to her account and sold a significant portion of her holdings
The court was informed that the shares were worth Rs 75.99 lakh at the time.
On April 30, a bench comprising Justices Revati Mohite-Dere and Neela K Gokhale took strong note of the case and the slow pace of investigation. Earlier, the High Court had criticized Mumbai Police for the “shameful delay” in acting on the woman’s complaint and had asked IDBI Bank to compensate her.
Shares to be frozen until probe concludes; both parties maintain legal rights
On Wednesday, advocate Mayur Khandeparkar, appearing for IDBI Bank, submitted an affidavit stating the bank would procure and credit the exact number of shares to the woman’s newly opened demat account within three weeks. The shares, once credited, will remain frozen until the ongoing investigation concludes.
The High Court clarified that the share deposit is being made without prejudice to the bank’s or the petitioner’s legal rights. Meanwhile, Cuffe Parade police have registered an FIR and the case has been transferred to the property cell of the CID for a deeper probe, including the role of complicit bank officials.
