Paytm probe takes police team to Bahraich

NOIDA: The investigation into the blackmail and extortion scandal at Paytm took a police team to Bahraich on Friday. Rupak Jain, husband of Paytm vice-president and founder Vijay Shekhar Sharma’s personal secretary Sonia Dhawan, allegedly received a call demanding Rs 5 crore from there.

Sonia (32), Rupak and Devender Kumar, a Paytm administration employee, were arrested on October 22 for allegedly demand-ing Rs 20 crore from Vijay Shekhar Sharma and blackmailing him with data they allegedly stole from him.

Rupak’s brother Kapil said the extortion call came on September 22 and Rupak had filed a complaint at Sector 39 police station, but no action was taken. “After a month, now some momentum is seen but why were the police silent all this time?” he asked.

Amit Kumar Singh, SHO of Sector 39 police station, said they found the number from which the call was made to be registered in the name of a mason, who had come to Noida for some work.

“His mobile phone was stolen a few days before Rupak received the ransom call,” Singh said. “When we traced the number, we found the location as Bahraich and one team has been sent there for investigation,” Singh said.

Kapil, meanwhile, asked why Rahul Adhana, a Paytm employee who has been dismissed after the scandal broke, had not been named in the FIR. “Ajay Shekhar Sharma, senior vice-president of Paytm (and founder Vijay’s brother) has told the media Adhana and Devender gave the data to Rohit Chomal (the fourth accused in the case),” Kapil said.

Adhana, like Devender, was an employee of the administration department.

Manoj Panth, SHO of Sector 20 police station, said they did not find any involvement of Adhana in the case. Vijay Shekhar and Ajay Shekhar did not name him in the complaint given to us,” Panth said.