Trinamool Congress (TMC) MP from West Bengal's Serampore Lok Sabha constituency, Kalyan Banerjee, has lost Rs 56 lakh after scammers broke into his bank account using fraudulent KYC documents.
According to reports, cyber criminals targeted Banerjee's dormant State Bank of India (SBI) account at the High Court branch in Kolkata and siphoned off over Rs 55 lakh using fake KYC documents.
The incident came to light when Kalyan Banerjee discovered that a large sum had been transferred from his personal account at SBI's Kalighat branch to another old, dormant account of his. This account had been opened between 2001 and 2006 when he was serving as an MLA. Subsequently, the money was withdrawn from this dormant account through multiple online transactions.
According to the complaint filed by SBI at the Cyber Crime Police Station, the fraudsters created fake PAN and Aadhaar cards in Banerjee's name, with someone else's photograph affixed to them. On 28 October 2025, they updated the KYC details and changed the registered mobile number, thereby gaining complete control of the account and successfully transferring a total of Rs 56.39 lakh.
According to reports, the amount was allegedly transferred to several beneficiary accounts, spent on jewellery purchases, and withdrawn from ATMs. SBI has initiated an internal investigation and stated it will provide full cooperation to investigating agencies. The bank has handed over all KYC and transaction records to the police.
A formal complaint has been filed with the Bank Cybercrime Cell of Kolkata Police regarding the fraud. The Kolkata Police Cyber Crime Division has confirmed that an investigation is underway to identify the accused and trace where the funds were transferred.
