Police have booked BJP MLC from Jalgaon Chandulal Patel as a suspect in an alleged scam of around Rs 1,200 crore related to Bhaichand Hirachand Raisoni (BHR) State Cooperative Credit Society.
Over the past month, the economic offences wing (EOW) of Pune Police crime branch arrested 13 people, including prime suspect Jitendra Kandare, following raids at different locations in Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh, for their alleged involvement in the scam.
Deputy commissioner of police (EOW) Bhagyashree Navtake said an arrest warrant against Patel was issued last month when the raids were carried out. He was on the run, Navtake added.
In 2015, based on a complaint of cheating lodged at Kothrud police station by a senior citizen, Mukund Badve, and other depositors, police arrested 12 people, including the chairperson and directors of BHR State Cooperative Credit Society.
In this case, the credit society allegedly attracted depositors by offering 13 per cent interest on fixed deposits. Like Badve, a large number of people deposited lakhs and did not get the assured returns.
Later, 81 cases were registered at different police stations across the state in this scam, in which investors were allegedly duped to the tune of Rs 1,200 crore by misappropriation of deposits. Directors of BHR State Cooperative Credit Society, who were arrested in the past, are currently lodged in jail.
Following a fresh case of cheating lodged on a complaint by a 65-year-old retired teacher, Ranjana Ghorpade, at Deccan police station on November 25, 2020, Pune Police arrested more people in this scam.
