This complaint was lodged by Ajay Kumar Punna, Authorized Representative of Unity Small Finance Bank Limited. The police received this complaint on February 28, 2026.
The case was registered based on the findings of preliminary investigation and approval from the Deputy Commissioner of Police, Central Crime Station (CCS), Hyderabad.
Names of five old officers in the complaint
The complaint names Basam Nikhilesh Reddy, former regional credit manager (secured lending); Kiran Lingam, former Area Business Manager (Sales-Secured Lending); Sheikh Arshad Mohammed, former area business manager; Ajay Nevatia, former Senior Regional Head (Business Banking Group); and E. Sai Shravan Kumar, former Relationship Manager (Secured Lending).
The accused worked in the bank’s South Hyderabad zone and surrounding areas between 2023 and 2025.
According to the complaint, he was responsible for sourcing, appraisal, underwriting, valuation coordination, loan disbursal and monitoring of secured loan accounts.
Bank draws attention to unusual default trends
The bank said it detected serious irregularities as early as 2025. These included unusual default trends, unusually high 90-plus days past due (DPD) accounts, inflated collateral valuations and customer complaints.
An internal investigation by the bank’s fraud risk management team reportedly found that five officials conspired to misuse their positions for personal gain.
He allegedly sought and accepted illegal bribes for loan approval, approved loans based on inflated valuations of properties and flouted group exposure norms.
The complaint also alleged misuse of supervisor login credentials to approve unauthorized loan cases.
Loan worth hundreds of crores is being investigated
The bank said the accused allegedly diverted payments to direct selling agents and arranged illegal EMI funding through local financiers to avoid the loan accounts being classified as non-performing assets.
Funds were allegedly sent through relatives and third parties to hide the income. The bank claimed that some of the accused have confessed in writing to taking illegal benefits and manipulating the internal system.
Investigation revealed that the total loan accounts handled by the accused were worth several hundred crores.
According to the complaint, the total amount of 271 loan accounts linked to Kiran Lingam was approximately ₹94.16 crore. Of this, ₹10.14 crore was classified as 90-plus DPD.
The amount of the other 767 accounts linked to Sheikh Arshad Mohammed was approximately ₹491.38 crore, of which ₹59.94 crore was classified as 90-plus DPD.
The bank identified confirmed exposures of approximately ₹70 crore in more than 90 DPD accounts linked to the portfolios of the accused.
Police said these alleged actions caused financial loss to the bank and posed regulatory and reputational risks.
These crimes include criminal breach of trust, cheating, forgery, misuse of electronic system and criminal conspiracy under the Indian Justice Code, 2023.
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