Gandhinagar, Nov 4 — A flat worth Rs 26 lakh, cash and cheques worth more than Rs 37 lakh, documents relating to seven vighas of agricultural land and two properties, and gold and silver ornaments were returned to victims of fraud, cheating and illegal moneylending by Gujarat Deputy Chief Minister Harsh Sanghavi under the police's ‘Tera Tujhko Arpan’ programme in Gandhinagar on Wednesday.
The recovered assets and valuables were handed over to their original owners following police intervention in six cases reported in Anand district.
The beneficiaries included widows, people cheated on the pretext of business and religious rituals, and borrowers allegedly harassed by moneylenders.
In one case, Vijaybhai Bharda, originally from Morbi and currently residing in Bedwa village of Anand, was allegedly cheated of Rs 26 lakh by Kalpeshbhai Jani on the pretext of an import-export business.
Jani allegedly used the money to purchase a flat in Vidhyanagar before absconding. A team led by J N Parmar, Police Inspector of the Parole-Furlough Squad, traced the accused and facilitated the return of the flat, valued at Rs 26 lakh, to Bharda.
In another case, police recovered Rs four lakh in cash and two cheques of Rs three lakh each from Shravan Amaraji Patel of Gopal Chowkdi.
The money had been borrowed from Parulben Pandya, a widow residing in Vidhyanagar whose late husband had served as a police inspector. The amount had not been returned.
Police also intervened in a case involving Geetaben Pandav of Jitodiya, who was allegedly misled on the pretext of performing Narayanbali rituals and remedies for Pitrudosh.
Atishbhai Trivedi and his family members had taken gold and silver ornaments weighing around 56 tolas. Following police counselling, eight tolas of gold and 400 grams of silver were returned.
An undertaking was also obtained before a notary for the return of the remaining ornaments. In Tarapur, police intervened after Dhavalkumar Patel, allegedly distressed by harassment and coercive recovery tactics employed by moneylender Sanjaybhai Bharwad, was on his way to the Moti Canal to die by suicide.
Police counselled him and secured the return of the original mortgage agreement for seven vighas of agricultural land, a cheque for Rs two lakh and seven signed blank cheques.
Separately, Tarapur Police registered a case against Mohammad Sohel Vohra for allegedly demanding exorbitant interest, invoking provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and the Gujarat Money-Lenders Act.
In another case, police recovered the original documents of a house from Navinbhai Bharwad, the mortgage deed of a hotel from Prakashbhai Patel, and nine cheques collectively worth Rs 28.50 lakh from different parties.
The recovery followed a representation by Rakeshbhai Patel of Tarapur to the Home Department regarding properties mortgaged against loans carrying allegedly excessive interest.
Police also recovered Rs 1.5 lakh in cash from Hiteshbhai Patel after Parulben Patel, a widow residing in Shivshakti Society in Tarapur, approached the Home Department and the District Superintendent of Police over the non-repayment of money lent by her late husband to Hiteshbhai Patel and Manishbhai Chauhan.
An appropriate settlement was also secured regarding the remaining amount. Addressing the programme, Sanghavi said: "The Gujarat Police remained committed to protecting the lives and property of ordinary citizens."
He appreciated the work undertaken by Anand district police. The beneficiaries thanked the state government and Anand Police for helping them recover their property and valuables.