Kasaragod jewellery deposit scam: Many Gulf returnees lose lifetime savings

A police raid at the houses of the accused, IUML leader TK Pookoya Thangal and Manjeswaram MLA MC Kamarudheen, did not turn up any documents.
IUML cheating jewelry deposit
IUML cheating jewelry deposit
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Akkarakkaran Abdul Shukoor from Kerala’s Kanjangad did all kinds of jobs in Dubai for 30 years before he returned home in 2019 to live with his family. He invested his lifetime savings of Rs 30 lakh in Fashion Gold Jewellery to become a shareholder. Investors were promised a monthly or yearly interest payment of Rs 1,000 for Rs 1 lakh and a share of the profits.

For the next four months, Shukoor got Rs 30,000 per month regularly. Then the payments stopped. Slowly, the three outlets of the jewellery group in Kasaragod and Kannur districts shut down.

“I called TK Pookoya Thangal, the Managing Director of the jewellery group, but his phone was off. When we visited his house, it was locked,” Shukoor says.

“It was my life savings. I don’t have any other means to live. I did all kinds of jobs day and night to earn the money. Now I’ll have to start from the beginning,” he says.

Like Shukoor there are many who lost lakhs of rupees in the jewellery deposit scam in which Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) leader Pookoya Thangal as well as Manjeswaram MLA MC Kamarudheen, co-owner of the jewellery group, are the accused.

There are about 16 cases registered against the IUML leaders in Chandera and Kasaragod police stations. Apart from that, there are other cheque bouncing cases against them. Reports say investors have lost more than Rs 1 crore as of now, but as per sources there is more money involved in the scam.

“More than 700 people have invested in the jewellery group. It’s not just a Rs 1 crore scam, at least Rs 100 crore is involved here. But many of the people who were cheated will not complain as they have to give proof of the source of money. Many of them have invested huge amounts, I know this personally. Only people who can show the source of money have complained so far,” one of the complainants alleged, seeking anonymity.

Abdulla Moideen Kunji was also an investor. He returned from Dubai in 2013 and invested Rs 10 lakh in Fashion Gold Jewellery. “They gave back Rs 7 lakh over the years, Rs 3 lakh is still pending. Two years ago, I met with an accident and now I can’t go for any work. I need another surgery on my legs. I have no money, I’m not even able to continue my treatment,” Moideen says.

Another investor, C Khalid, who is yet to file a complaint, lost around Rs 70 lakh. “I have invested money in the firm since 2013. I had faith in them as they were IUML leaders, I never expected them to cheat us. I worked for 30 years in the Gulf to earn the money I had invested. That is all I had,” Khalid says.

Though he gave a complaint a few weeks ago, it was not registered due to some technical issue, so he is planning to give another complaint at the Chandera police station.

Meanwhile, the Crime Branch has taken up the case. Chandera police on Tuesday raided the houses of Pookoya Thangal and Kamarudheen. The team, led by Chadera Station House Officer P Narayanan, couldn’t find any documents from their houses.

MLA Kamarudheen told the media that the controversy was politically motivated and that he will pay back every investor’s money at the earliest.

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