Actor and BJP MP Kangana Ranaut has publicly responded to yoga guru Baba Ramdev's critical remarks about her controversial comments on Gen Z. The exchange escalated on Instagram after Ramdev questioned Kangana's past, prompting her to reference his 2024 Supreme Court case regarding Patanjali's misleading advertisements.
India's UPI International payment system is now playing a crucial role in humanitarian efforts, enabling seamless disaster relief donations from Indian users to Nepal's Prime Minister Disaster Relief Fund, showcasing its growing global acceptance and utility beyond tourism. UPI IMAGE: Kindly note that this image has been posted for representational purposes only. Photograph: Unsplash Key Points UPI International, initially for Indian tourists, is now facilitating disaster relief donations to Nepal's Prime Minister Disaster Relief Fund. The embassy of Nepal in India is actively encouraging Indian users to utilise their UPI apps for these contributions. This marks a significant shift, expanding UPI's cross-border use case beyond tourism to include inbound collection for foreign governments. The move positions UPI International alongside global payment giants like Alipay+ and UnionPay for international aid. Donors need to activate the UPI International feature on their apps to transact, with amounts converted from INR to NPR.
Delhi Police have arrested three individuals, including a bank official, for allegedly defrauding a retired government officer of over Rs 45 lakh through a fake trading application.
Police in Rajasthan have arrested 38 individuals involved in a nationwide cyber fraud network, unearthing scams worth over Rs 10 crore under 'Operation Mule Hunt'. The accused operated from various locations, including Dubai, and lured victims through investment, trading, and escort service schemes.
Central tax authorities detected input tax credit (ITC) fraud worth Rs 74,781.56 crore across 30,162 cases in FY26, more than doubling the number of cases from the previous year, according to the Ministry of Finance.
Financial Services Secretary M Nagaraju has urged banks to adopt the MuleHunter AI tool developed by RBI to identify and prevent mule accounts used in cyber financial frauds. The meeting also discussed 'Operation Octopus' by Hyderabad Police and emphasised coordinated efforts and intelligence sharing.
Uttar Pradesh Police have uncovered an inter-state cyber fraud syndicate with suspected links to Nepal and Chinese handlers, arresting five people in Bareilly district.
Ludhiana Police have busted a large cyber fraud racket, arresting 132 people involved in running fake call centres that targeted foreign nationals through various online scams.
Hyderabad Police have dismantled a pan-India cyber fraud network, arresting 52 individuals across nine states in 'Operation Octopus 2.0'. The operation targeted bank officials, mule account holders, and middlemen involved in facilitating cyber frauds.
A former scheduled caste promoter of the Thiruvananthapuram Corporation was arrested in connection with an alleged Rs 75 lakh subsidy fraud under a self-employment scheme for women of the marginalised community.
Greater Noida police arrested three members of a gang involved in fraudulent property registrations, cheating people of approximately Rs 3 crore. The gang used forged documents to sell properties, particularly targeting owners who lived away.
Kolkata Police Deputy Commissioner Shantanu Sinha Biswas has been arrested by the Enforcement Directorate in connection with a fraud and extortion case linked to the Sona Pappu network.
A new report by FICCI, BCG, and IBA outlines that India's banking sector must grow significantly faster than nominal GDP to support a USD 30 trillion economy by 2047, requiring banking assets of USD 45 trillion. The report highlights the sector's current strength, challenges in digitisation, and the need to enhance resilience against fraud and cyber threats, proposing a 13-point agenda for stakeholders.
A 25-year-old man was arrested in Jharkhand after allegedly defrauding a Delhi resident of Rs 80,000 through a malicious APK link.
Police in Pilibhit, Uttar Pradesh, have uncovered a GST fraud involving the misuse of a GST ID to misappropriate approximately Rs 7 crore. The investigation revealed 13 fake firms allegedly used to generate bogus bills.
A Mumbai court has refused bail to 71-year-old Prakash Dubey, who is accused of illegally acquiring 12,550 square metres of land using counterfeit government stamps and a forged power of attorney. The court cited the seriousness of the allegations and the ongoing investigation, stating that Dubey's age and medical conditions did not outweigh the gravity of the crime.
The Special Operations Group (SOG) has uncovered a major fraud in the Rajasthan Government Health Scheme, involving doctors and a lab operator allegedly causing financial losses worth crores to the state exchequer.
The Enforcement Directorate has summoned several farmers in Jaipur as part of an investigation into alleged money laundering and fraudulent land aggregation involving real estate developers.
Kapil Chugh, accused of masterminding a Rs 1,825 crore GST refund fraud, has been arrested by DGGI officers upon his return from Dubai. He is alleged to have evaded investigation and is wanted in other economic criminal cases.
Authorities in Delhi have implemented a QR code-based verification system for census enumerators and supervisors to combat rising cyber fraud cases involving impersonation and fake government officials during the Census 2027.
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has attached properties worth Rs 1.06 crore in connection with the 'Global Media App' fraud, an online earning platform that allegedly generated over Rs 45 crore through illicit means.
Police in Meerut, Uttar Pradesh, have dismantled an illegal telephone exchange allegedly used for revenue loss and an online fake loan racket, arresting three individuals and seizing a large quantity of equipment.
Gujarat CID has arrested Rafiqul Alam, the alleged 'mastermind' behind 1,090 cybercrimes totalling Rs 1,071.5 crore, who was found to have links with China-based criminals and converted illicit funds into cryptocurrencies.
Gurugram police have arrested five individuals in connection with a Rs 42.92 lakh digital arrest scam. The fraudsters posed as CBI officers, intimidated a victim, and coerced them into transferring a large sum of money. The arrested individuals include account holders and those who withdrew the defrauded cash.
Delhi Police have arrested a 32-year-old man in connection with a mobile phone theft case linked to fraudulent UPI transactions worth over Rs 1.2 lakh.
An Indian Parliamentary standing committee has demanded an apology from Meta chief Mark Zuckerberg within three days for the temporary removal of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's video from Facebook, threatening to withdraw immunity under the IT Act if he fails to comply. The committee also pushed for government action against Google India regarding financial fraud.
West Bengal's Chief Minister has ordered a special investigation into alleged fake accounts linked to the Lakshmir Bhandar scheme, a women's cash transfer initiative by the previous government, citing illegal cash transfers and men falsely claiming benefits.
State Bank of India (SBI) is extensively using artificial intelligence to underwrite nearly Rs 1 lakh crore in MSME loans and automate the processing of cheques up to Rs 10,000. This AI adoption aims to enhance efficiency, free up employee bandwidth, and improve customer service across various banking functions.
Delhi Police have arrested two individuals from Jharkhand for allegedly defrauding a 65-year-old man of over Rs 10 lakh through a cyber fraud involving APK files.
Delhi Police have arrested a man from Anantnag, Jammu and Kashmir, for allegedly defrauding a Delhi-based man of over Rs 5 lakh under the guise of supplying Kashmiri apple consignments. The accused had been evading arrest for nearly a decade.
A 35-year-old man from Thane district was allegedly cheated of Rs 2 lakh in a US dollar exchange fraud in Navi Mumbai. The victim was shown bundles appearing to contain US currency, but they turned out to be paper rolls and soap bars.
The Payments Council of India has confirmed that Unified Payments Interface (UPI) services will continue to be free for consumers and small merchants, despite a recent Lok Sabha Bill. This clarification addresses concerns about potential charges, emphasising that while a sustainable financial model for UPI infrastructure is being developed, transaction charges will not be passed on to users or small businesses.
Three officials from leading private banks have been arrested for their alleged involvement in a Rs 2,500-crore cyber fraud racket in Gujarat's Rajkot district, bringing the total number of arrests in the case to 20.
Six individuals, including the alleged mastermind and a website developer, have been arrested for operating a sophisticated fake airline job racket. The fraudsters used social media ads and fake websites to solicit fees for aviation diplomas, promising jobs at Indira Gandhi International Airport, and duped numerous job seekers before being caught.
Police in Kerala are investigating the potential involvement of hospitals in a racket that forged documents for organ donations. Six people have been arrested in connection with the scam, and the investigation is expanding to examine how hospital procedures may have been bypassed.
Two women, suspected to be linked to an interstate gang that allegedly defrauded a Gurugram exporter of Rs 2.49 crore and 50 tolas of gold, have been arrested. The accused are associated with a Gujarat-based film producer, who is considered the 'kingpin' of the gang.
A significant fraud involving the theft of gold ornaments and their replacement with fake jewellery has been discovered at a Canara Bank branch in Jalna district, Maharashtra. The alleged fraud amounts to Rs 7.31 crore.
Investigators recovered nearly Rs 80 lakh in cash and some foreign currency from six of the accused.
A Mumbai sessions court has denied pre-arrest bail to two individuals accused of misappropriating funds and fraud within a residential society in Wadala, citing the necessity of custodial interrogation.
Hyderabad Police Commissioner V C Sajjanar has proposed a Joint Working Group with the RBI and banks to address the issue of mule bank accounts used in cyber fraud. The proposal follows 'Operation Octopus,' which exposed vulnerabilities in KYC verification. Sajjanar also recommended strict directives for banks to fix accountability and adopt advanced technology to detect suspicious transactions.
