Rs 17.29 Cr Fake Currency At PNB Chest: NIA Arrests Absconding Manager Amit Kumar

New Delhi: The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has arrested an absconding accused, Amit Kumar, a bank employee and key FIR-named accused in connection with the alleged counterfeit currency conspiracy at the Punjab National Bank (PNB) currency chest in Saharanpur, Uttar Pradesh.

The arrest has been made in case RC-02/2026/NIA/LKW. According to the NIA, Kumar was arrested in Chandigarh on September 7. He was subsequently produced before a Special NIA Court in Chandigarh, which granted two days' transit remand to enable his production before the Special NIA Court in Lucknow.

The case relates to the recovery of counterfeit Indian currency notes with a face value of Rs 17.29 crore from the PNB currency chest in Saharanpur on August 29, 2026.

The matter was initially registered as FIR No. 0431/2026 on August 29 at Sadar Bazar Police Station in Saharanpur under Section 178 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), 2023, against three accused persons.

The involvement of three PNB employees surfaced during the initial inquiry, following which the bank suspended them.

The case was subsequently taken over by the NIA and re-registered on September 3, 2026. The agency is probing the larger conspiracy, including the source, procurement and movement of the counterfeit currency and the alleged roles of other persons involved.

Amit Kumar, who was serving as a PNB manager and was a joint custodian of the currency chest at the relevant time, is among the three bank employees named in the FIR.

The NIA has said that its investigation is continuing to unravel the complete conspiracy and trace and arrest the remaining accused persons.