Lucknow, December 25, 2025 – A special CBI court in Lucknow has sentenced Braj Kumar Pandey and Manish Kumar Srivastava to five years imprisonment with a fine of Rs 12 lakh each for defrauding the Life Insurance Corporation (LIC) of India. The verdict was delivered on December 24, 2025.
The case, registered by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), concerned fraudulent payments totaling over Rs 15.22 lakh. The CBI's investigation revealed that the accused colluded with others in a criminal conspiracy to cheat LIC. The fraudulent activities occurred in 2003, involving 20 policies.
According to the CBI, Pradeep Kumar Pandey, while working as a Micro Processing Operator at the Career Agents Branch (CAB) of LIC in Gorakhpur between November 2001 and April 2003, misused his position. He allegedly exploited the passwords of branch officials to create fictitious policy masters and Salary Saving Scheme errors. This manipulation facilitated fraudulent payments under the 20 policies, causing wrongful loss to LIC and benefiting himself and his accomplices.
Following the investigation, the CBI filed a chargesheet on January 10, 2007, against Pradeep Kumar Pandey and five private individuals: Braj Kumar Pandey, Manish Kumar Srivastava, Pankaj Kumar Rawat, Amar Nath Pandey, and Dhananjay Kumar Upadhyaya.
During the trial, Pradeep Kumar Pandey and Amar Nath Pandey passed away. The court acquitted Pankaj Kumar Rawat and Dhananjay Kumar Upadhyaya due to a lack of sufficient evidence. Ultimately, Braj Kumar Pandey and Manish Kumar Srivastava were convicted and sentenced as per the recent ruling.
This case highlights the CBI's commitment to investigating and prosecuting individuals involved in financial irregularities and fraud, ensuring accountability and safeguarding public institutions like LIC from such criminal activities. In a separate case, the CBI recently arrested two bank officials for their involvement in opening mule accounts in collaboration with cyber criminals, who used the accounts for illegal fund transfers and fraud.
