Mumbai Police’s Economic Offences Wing (EOW) Tuesday booked four directors of a Chennai-based firm manufacturing milk products for allegedly defrauding a wholesale trader in Mumbai to the tune of Rs 26.53 crore.
Police booked directors of Chennai-based Srinithi Enterprises Private Limited: Anguraj Ramlingam, Chinnaswami Dhandapani, Dhanlaxmi Dhandapani, and Renukadevi Dhandapani.
The police action came on the complaint of Bandra (West) resident Sayyed Mudassar Firoz Rizvi, 36, who owns Silverstone Hospitality, involved in wholesale trade of milk products.
As per the FIR, which was first filed at the Bandra police station and later transferred to the EOW, Rizvi in March 2023 contacted Anguraj Ramlingam to place orders for milk products.
As per Ramlingam’s request, Rizvi paid Rs 74.66 crore between April 4, 2023, and July 20, 2023 to the bank accounts of Ramlingam and Srinithi Enterprises Private Limited, a company whose directors are Ramlingam’s relatives.
After this, it was verbally decided between the two parties that, as per Rizvi’s orders, the company would provide milk products of Sonai and Shivprasad brands to Rizvi’s firm, the complaint said.
However, they only supplied products worth Rs 38.73 crore between July 20, 2023, and August 7, 2023, Rizvi claimed in his complaint.
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Claiming shortages of milk products, Srinithi Enterprises refunded Rs 10.50 crore to account of Rizvi’s firm.
According to Rizvi, he later requested the accused firm to either supply milk products worth the rest or refund the money, but in vain.
According to the FIR, in August 2023, Rizvi, along with some of his friends, met the Chennai firm’s directors at their office in Tamil Nadu and signed an agreement which said that the accused firm will will return the rest of the Rs 35 crore in four phases or supply milk products for the same amount to Rizvi’s SilverStone Hospitality.
However, between August and October 2023, Srinithi Enterprises provided milk products worth Rs 3.96 crore to Rizvi’s and refunded Rs 3.95 crore to his firm, claiming a shortage of milk products.
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When Rizvi asked Ramlingam about the payment of the remaining Rs 26.53 crore, he sent a statement of his company bank account expressing inability to repay the rest of the money, the FIR stated.
When Rizvi’s firm analysed the bank statement sent by Ramlingam, they realised that their money was allegedly misused by the accused firm for some other purposes, he alleged.
Based on the complaint, the EOW registered an FIR under sections 316(5) (criminal breach of trust), 318(4) (cheating), and 61(2)(criminal conspiracy) of the Bhartiya Nyay Sanhita against the four accused.
When contacted, Anguraj Ramlingam said that allegations against his firm was “false” and there was “no intention of fraud.”
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“It’s a civil matter pertaining to a business deal going wrong. There was no intention of fraud. We joined the EOW’s inquiry, shared all details and cooperated with the inquiry. We even offered the complainant to settle the matter and told them that our properties are with the bank. Once the properties are released we could easily settle the financial dispute. Despite this, the Mumbai police registered a criminal case against us. The allegations against us are false,” he said.