Jamnagar: Religious preacher duped of Rs 29 lakh by sect ‘follower’

RAJKOT: A religious preacher in Jamnagar’s Khijadia temple was allegedly duped of Rs 28 lakh from one of the followers of his Pranami sector by luring him to invest in the mutual fund of a private bank.
Krishna Shastri, 35, a native of Haryana who works as a preacher and manages 15-room guest house of the temple, lodged a complaint against one Narayan Hakimlal, a native of Auraiya district in Uttar Pradesh
Shashtri alleged that a year-and-half ago Hakimlal posed as a follower of his sect and stayed in the guest house for a few days.He identified himself as a government officer working with the agriculture department. Hakimlal convinced him of good returns in the mutual fund and that he would help him invest the money. Between June 2019 and October 2019, Shastri transferred Rs 28.28 lakh in the accused's account to invest in the mutual fund.
Jamnagar A-division police station sources said that Shastri trusted the man because he identified himself from the same sect.
However, when the mutual fund was to be redeemed upon maturity, Hakimlal stopped taking Shastri’s calls. After Shastri’s pressure, the accused called him to Mumbai in January to visit the head office of the bank. However, Shastri alleged that he was taken to a closed building of a bank and handed a cheque of Rs 50 lakh which bounced due to non-availability of funds in the accused’s account.
Shastri then contacted the bank and was told that the amount that he transferred was deposited in the personal account of Hakimlal and there was no money invested in the mutual fund.