INDIA. Mumbai: A white-collar fraudster Raju Manohar Naik (54), Managing Director of the Mumbai-based United Ship Repairs and Marine works Private Ltd, who had cheated many people in Maharashtra and other states, was arrested by the Gujarat police on Sunday.
Naik, was arrested by a team of the Amreli police (Gujarat) from his residence at Tilak Nagar, Chembur in North East Mumbai, in connection with an offence ( C.R No. I-20/2018) registered at Amreli police by the Reliance Naval and Engineering Limited (RNEL).
He was arrested by a team of Gujarat police officers including: S.A Bagada, A. M Solanki, D.D Makavana, J.C.Kuvadiaya and R.K.Karamta, with the assistance of the Tilak Nagar Police. The raid was conducted under the direction of the Amreli Police Superintendent Nirlipt Rai, IPS.
The FIR was registered on April 04, 2018, by RNEL General Manager Manoj Upadhyay,
at Pipavav police station, Gujarat, against Naik, since he neither completed the contract awarded to him nor returned the advance money paid. The FIR was lodged under sections 406 (criminal breach of and 420 (Dishonestly inducing delivery of property) of the Indian Penal code.
Naik’s company- United Ship Repairs and Marine works Private Ltd, was awarded the contract worth Rs 5 crore to repair the warship -Indian Naval Ship Savitri by the Reliance in 2017 after Anil Ambani led company won the contract.
Naik who was a sub-contractor, did not complete the work and also kept the material given to him by the RNEL, raising the question of national security, since INS Savitri is a defense ship. After that, he escaped and applied for anticipatory bail. He had been evading arrest after a local court in Rajula taluka of Amreli rejected his anticipatory bail and issued his arrest warrant. Subsequently, his bail application was rejected by the Gujarat session court, High Court and subsequently the Supreme Court.
Another FIR in Mumbai
In addition to the FIR filed by the Reliance, at Pipapao police station, subsequently, another FIR (No 298/21 dated April 29) was filed against Naik and others at Mumbai’s Khar Police station, by one Ravi Jaysing on charges of cheating him to the tune of Rs 63 lakh by assuring him 34 percent ownership in a shipping company- Shri Tripuati Balaji Marine Enterprises Private Limited. The Memorandum of Understanding was signed on November 06, 2018. However, the agreement was proved to be fake since Jaysing was not given 34 percent shares by the directors of the company. Naik was informant in this case.
A mother-daughter duo wanted
Besides, Naik, Ragini Khandelwal (52), and Mansi Khandelwal (22) a mother-daughter duo have also been named in the FIR. Mansi is stated to be Naik’s married daughter and Ragini is her mother.
While Naik has been arrested, Ragini and Mansi, wanted in many cheating cases in and around Mumbai, are stated to be absconding after their bail application (No 1760) was rejected by Justice Sarang Kotwal at the Bombay High Court on July 29.
Ragini and Mansi Khandelwal (Inset), who have cheated multiple people of Rs 14 crore by showing the hull of the old vessel.(Photo credit : Padma Shelatkar).
Ragini and Mansi duped an Andheri businessman Sushant Shelatkar of Rs 1.3 cr by promising him to give a tugboat and a barge vessel. The deal was made in June 2020. The deal did not materialize although Shelatkar paid full money to the duo. A case was lodged by him at Andheri police station against the duo. The duo has said to have cheated multiple people of Rs 14 crore by showing the hull of the same vessel.
Ragini and Mansi are involved in many cases of cheating and quite a few FIRs have been registered against them. They are FIR No. 231 /2015, Bazarpeth Police station (Kalyan) (under section 420, 406, 34 IPC) against Padmakar Dash and Ragini Khandelwal, FIR No. I-305 /2020, Khadakpada Police station (Thane) (under sections 420, 406, 34 IPC), FIR No. 03 /2021, Sahar Police station, Mumbai(under sections 188, 269, 270 IPC and 51 of Disaster Management Act, 2005), FIR No. 987 /2020 at Andheri Police station, Mumbai (under sections 420, 406, 34 IPC), FIR No. I-170/2021, Khadakpada police station,
In addition to above the Non-cognizable offence complaints (No. 506/2020 at Amboli police station, Mumbai, ( No. 18/2020) at Khar Police Station and (No. 411/2020 at Khadakpada Police Station) have been lodged against the duo. Besides, 04 cases under the Negotiable Instrument Act amounting to Rs. 4 crores are also pending against them
Advocate Padma Shelatkar, the Owner of Wisdom Law Chambers, legal consultant, and social activist who was instrumental in arresting Naik and exposing frauds committed by Naik, Ragini and Mansi, told the “Transcontinental Times” that there could be many more such cases of cheating committed by the trio. They have been posing themselves as shipyard owners and cheating people. Notably, in a case registered at Andheri police station, Khandelwals had given a written undertaking to the court, to pay the amount of Rs 1.30 crore to the complainant, to seek the bail. However, once they got the bail, they ran away.
