The complaint filed by Robbins LLP asserts that HDFC Bank misled shareholders by disguising roughly 45 crore rupees—approximately $4.7 million—in payments to the Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation. These funds were reportedly used to offer the state firm a 6.01% interest rate, a 2.51% premium over standard savings accounts, while hiding the transaction as sponsorship for road safety campaigns.

Legal scrutiny intensified following the March 2026 resignation of Atanu Chakraborty, then Chairman and Independent Director, who cited practices within the bank that were not in alignment with his professional ethics. That disclosure triggered a 7.28% decline in the bank's American Depositary Shares. A subsequent report in The Indian Express further alleged that an internal investigation implicated top leadership, including CEO Sashidhar Jagdishan, in the scheme. Shares dropped an additional 4.1% following those revelations in May.