Sitting amid the blackened remains of his home, 32-year-old Nikesh Gawali carefully broke open a half-melted plastic box with a screwdriver. His hands shook slightly, not out of fear, but out of hope. “I’m trying to find my daughter Aarti’s gold earrings,” he said quietly, still focused on the box. “She’s just five. I got them made recently after months of labour work.” The plastic box, warped and blackened by heat, was one of the few things left from his two-room house on the outskirts of Dhamangaon village . All around him lay ash, broken tin sheets and charred wooden beams. The walls had cracked under the heat and the front room’s tin roof had caved in completely. What remained was a blackened debris all around - almost nothing to suggest a home once stood there. Nikesh earns his living as an agricultural labourer, like many in the village. Work is uncertain and depends on the season. Those earrings weren’t just jewellery - they were a small dream, a reward for his hard work,...
- The number of aggrieved investors are increasing, as 32 more persons approach Economic Offence Wing of Crime Branch taking total number to 335
- Total liability of Wasankar now crosses Rs 90 crore mark
By Dheeraj Fartode
Crime Branch is now flooded with complaints on part of investors duped by Prashant Wasankar and his cronies after its Economic Offences Wing (EoW) filed fool proof chargesheeet against the fruadsters. Now 32 more cases were received by cops during a one month period. The total investors duped by Wasankar Wealth Management Ltd. has reached 335 while liability has touched Rs. 90 crores.
With Wasankar failing to get any relief from court, the accused associates are getting panicky and started approaching investors to prevent further complaints reaching the cops. The main plank of Wasankar who is seeking bail is that he has got more deposits that the liability. But in case the liability figure increased then the chances of accused person getting bail might become quite difficult, it is learnt. A few investors told The Hitavada that they have received invitation from erstwhile employees of Wasankar for talks to settle the matter out of court. The investor had receiving a call, where the caller identified himself as association of Wasankar and the latter stated that that they would sing the agreement and then submit it in the court.
However law experts said that this is a ploy by Wasankar to turn the criminal breach of trust case into a civil case. If the case turn into Civil case, then court will take more than 15 years to give decision. A police officer said that the investors must ask Wasankar to submit an undertaking in the court about when he would return the money of gullible investors. This move can benefit the investors as hopes of early return of their investment are more bright.
It may be recalled that cops had filed 4,025-pages chargesheet against Wasankar Wealth Management Ltd and its directors recently under Maharashtra Protection of Interest of Depositors (MPID) Act. The chargesheet was filed against three accused -- Chairman of Wasankar Wealth Management Ltd Prashant Jaideo Wasankar; his brother-in-law and Director Abhijit Jayant Choudhary and younger brother and Director Vinay Wasankar. EoW had booked Chairman, Directors, Chief Executive Officer and three employees of Wasankar Wealth Management Ltd. for allegedly duping investors to the tune of crores of rupees on May 9 on the basis of a complaint lodged by well-known builder Vivek Pathak.
On the basis of the complaint, an offence under Sections 420, 406, 506, 120 of the Indian Penal Code read with section 3 of the MPID act was registered against Wasankar. His arrest was a big blow for hundreds of his investors and admirers who viewed him as some sort of financial wizard with a midas touch. Initially, a substantial number of investors mobilised support for Wasankar and termed the complainants as spoilsport but later harsh reality surfaced and many of them quietly filed complaint against Wasankar.
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