The Central Crime Station (CCS) in Hyderabad on Thursday arrested Sailesh Kumar Gujjar and Nandini, the owners of Rishab Chit Fund, who had been absconding after allegedly duping more than 500 people of Rs 60 crore.
The police said that they received a complaint on December 12 from a private employee that he had been cheated by the duo, following which a case under Section 406 (Criminal breach of trust), 420 (Cheating and dishonestly inducing delivery of property) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) besides relevant sections of the Telangana State Protection of Depositors of Financial Establishment Act, 1999.
In a press note, the police said, “Sailesh Kumar Gujjar and his wife, Nandini, have started Rishab Chit Fund in the year 2009 and got registered. They collected money in the form of chit business and also collected fixed deposits from persons known to them. Further, they diverted the money into a casino business at Goa and suffered huge losses.”
The investigators said that they did not return the money to the chit members and depositors even one and a half years after their maturity dates.
“The total amount cheated by the accused expected to be around 50 to 60 crore and around 500 victims have been caused wrongful loss,” the police added.
The accused were produced before a local court in the city and remanded to judicial custody.
In October this year, the Hyderabad police arrested prominent entrepreneur-politician Nowhera Shaikh on charges of allegedly cheating investors. Nowhera, Managing Director of Heera Group of Companies, was arrested in New Delhi and brought to Hyderabad on a transit remand, for cheating, criminal breach of trust and criminal intimidation.
She was also booked under sections of the Telangana Deposits of Financial Establishment Act 1999 and The Prize Chits and Money Circulation Schemes (Banning) Act, 1978.
The police said that they found incriminating evidence against Nowhera, who runs various businesses in India and the Middle East. She also floated the All India Mahila Empowerment Party.
The police claimed that during investigation, evidences of diversion of funds came to light.