Former West Bengal minister and CPI-M leader Asok Bhattacharya became the victim of a fraud after scamsters obtained his ATM card number and pin number and withdrew over Rs.29,000 from his bank account in Siliguri.
The incident took place Thursday when Bhattacharya got a call on his mobile seeking details of his ATM card.
"The caller said my ATM card has been blocked for security reasons and they need my ATM card number and pin number to issue a new card. I was a bit casual and gave the information. Later I got to know that around Rs.29,000 has been withdrawn from my account," Bhattacharya told IANS Friday.
The former municipal affairs minister subsequently filed a police complaint and also blocked his ATM card.
"We have registered a complaint and investigation is on. There have been similar complaints from others also. We are looking if a gang is involved in this," Deputy Commissioner of Police (Siliguri) O.G. Pal said.