Nokia officers prosecuted for ₹19.33 crore EPFO fraud in India
The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has filed a case against two senior officials of Nokia Solutions & Networks India Pvt Ltd – Vaibhav Verma, payroll cluster lead, and Kamaraju Mutyala, head of payroll management – for siphoning about ₹19.33 crore from the Employees' Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO). The officials created 94 fictitious employee accounts and directed the transfer of provident‑fund balances into those accounts during the 2023‑24 fiscal year.
The scheme came to light after Nokia surrendered its “exempted establishment” status under the EPF Act in July 2023 and began depositing contributions directly with EPFO in September 2023. EPFO’s Zonal Fraud Risk Management Committee, acting on a complaint received via the CPGRAMS portal, identified the fake accounts. A Nokia‑initiated forensic audit traced the fraudulent processing to Verma and Mutyala, found deleted files on their laptops, and led the company to suspend the two employees and start disciplinary action.
The case is being investigated under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, the Prevention of Corruption Act and the Information Technology Act.
Entities: Central Bureau of Investigation · Employees' Provident Fund Organisation · Employees' Provident Fund Organization · Kamaraju Mutyala · Nokia · Nokia Solutions & Networks India Pvt Ltd · Vaibhav Verma
Claims
What the coverage asserts, and how well corroborated each claim is across sources.
- [● 5 SOURCES] A Nokia internal forensic audit traced the fraud to Verma and Mutyala, finding deleted files on their laptops after submission to EPFO.
- [● 5 SOURCES] The two officials created 94 fictitious employee accounts to siphon the provident‑fund money.
- [● 5 SOURCES] The fraudulent withdrawals totalled around ₹19.33 crore during the 2023‑24 fiscal year.
- [● 5 SOURCES] Nokia suspended the two employees and initiated disciplinary proceedings following the audit.
- [● 5 SOURCES] Nokia surrendered its exempted‑establishment status under the EPF Act in July 2023 and began depositing contributions directly with EPFO in September 2023.
- [● 5 SOURCES] The CBI registered a case against two Nokia employees for an alleged EPFO fraud of approximately ₹19.33 crore.
- [● 5 SOURCES] EPFO’s Zonal Fraud Risk Management Committee identified the 94 fake accounts after a complaint filed via the CPGRAMS portal.
- [● 5 SOURCES] The accused are Vaibhav Verma (payroll cluster lead) and Kamaraju Mutyala (head of payroll management).