Nagpur: Several government aid seekers and seven women field executives were duped of more than Rs 35 lakh by a finance company in Nagpur.
Sitabuldi Police have booked two persons including an operator of the finance company for duping many women under the guise of offering benefits from government schemes. According to police, the accused, posing as a field executive, visited people’s homes to assist them with filling out forms for government schemes and charged a fee for the service. However, after collecting the sum, the accused shut down the office and absconded.
The police have filed a case against Sagar Sanjay Khandare (28), a resident of Anand Nagar, Sakkardara, and Priyanka Lokesh Sanap (31), a resident of Bhende Layout, Khamla. The case was lodged based on a complaint filed by Sadhna Bandu Katkar (49), a resident of Mahadula and seven others.
The Ocean Finance Company, situated in Rahul Market, Third Floor, Sitabuldi’s Modi No 3, initially advertised free sewing machines provided by the Ocean Education Society for underprivileged women. However, upon visiting the office, Sadhna and others discovered that it was a finance company. Sagar claimed to assist citizens in accessing government scheme benefits. He asked Sadhna to work for him from home as a field executive.
Sadhna and seven other women were assigned similar roles in different areas. They were tasked with obtaining forms for various schemes, including Unemployment Allowance, Atal Pension Scheme, Old Pension Scheme, Sewing Machine Scheme, Lakshmi Kalyan Yojana, and Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana. Each form collected attracted fees ranging from Rs 100 to Rs 9,500, deposited along with the forms to Manager Priyanka Sanap.
After collecting a total of Rs 35 lakh, Sagar abruptly ceased operations and left the victims without any benefits or assistance. The affected women reported the incident to Sitabuldi police after which an offence under Sections 420, 406 and 34 of IPC was registered by the police.
