BENGALURU: The alleged Rs 400cr cash heist in October last year at Chorla Ghat, located at the intersection of Karnataka, Maharashtra and Goa, that has created a political storm in Karnataka is a “mystery for the Maharashtra and Karnataka police on whether the said robbery really happened, since no concrete evidence has been found so far”, said sources on condition of anonymity.
“The alleged container trucks carrying demonetised currency notes of Rs 1,000 and Rs 500 with a questionable and attributed face value of Rs 400 crore, have not been found or tracked as yet, nor has there been a formal complaint on the alleged robbery,” they added.
Superintendent of Police (SP), Belagavi, K Ramarajan told reporters that in the absence of a complaint or concrete evidence, no case has been registered in Karnataka yet.
The alleged robbery of cash in currency notes of Rs 500 and Rs 1000, which were demonetised in November 2016, came to light on January 9 after a complaint by Nashik businessman Sandeep Patil, and Ghoti police in Nashik Rural registered an FIR.
In his complaint, Patil stated that some people accused him of robbing demonetised currency and kidnapped him on October 22 last year. They assaulted him and asked him to return the money.
The Maharashtra government constituted a special investigation team (SIT) headed by an IPS officer of the rank of Additional Superintendent of Police (ASP) to probe the case. The SIT registered a case of kidnapping under the
Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and arrested six accused -- Jayesh Kadam, Vishal Naidu, Sunil Dhumal, Virat Gandhi, Janardhan Dhaigude and Machchindra Madvi, all from Mumbai – on charges of kidnapping. “Investigation is in the final stage. The SIT is looking for Thane-based realtor Kishor Sawla in the case,” said sources.
A police team from Belagavi is has reached Nashik and is coordinating with the SIT. “The SIT has shared some documents with Karnataka police,” added sources.