Rajkissore Dutt

Rajkissore Dutt (alternate spelling: Raj Kishore Dutt) (fl. 19th century) was a 19th-century Indian businessman, who is most notable for perpetrating a major fraud against the Bank of Bengal, which is one of the predecessors of the State Bank of India.

Biography

Early life

He was born and raised in Kolkata. He was known for being a devout Hindu and he regularly worshipped the Hindu goddess Kali.

Career

He established a bank in Kolkata. The bank circulated its own banknotes and achieved significant success.

Discovery and Trial

However, his misdeeds were soon discovered and he was tried, convicted and sentenced to transportation in the penal colonies of the East India Company, where he lived out the rest of his life.

The trial thus commenced and the final judgement was given on 30 June 1834 by the Court of Directors of the East India Company. The fraud perpetrated by Rajkissore Dutt wiped out a major part of the bank's profit for the year. The fraud also impacted the dividends paid out by the bank till the year 1834.