Rs 28-lakh fraud: Jalandhar BJP legal cell chief held in Amritsar

Tribune News Service

Amritsar/Jalandhar, September 13

The Division B police of Amritsar on Monday nabbed Jalandhar BJP legal cell chief Lakhan Gandhi in a Rs 28.44-lakh fraud case.

The complainant, Charanjit Kaur, told the police that the accused cheated her of Rs28.44 lakh on the pretext of getting an FIR against her son, Lovepreet, cancelled and getting him released on bail. Lovepreet was booked by Division B police in a case of rape lodged on March 8 last year.

Serving as an advocate for the past nearly six years, Lakhan Gandhi had passed out from the local St Soldier Law College. Using his connections, he got himself appointed as the BJP legal cell chief last year

Gandhi was produced before a court, which sent him to one-day police custody. A total of four persons were booked in the case. Besides Gandhi, the police had booked complainant’s sister Manju Khera and her nephew Nitin Khera, both residents of Basti Gujjan in Jalandhar, and Amandeep Singh of Sultanwind Road under Sections 420, 465, 467, 468, 471 and 120-B of the IPC. Division B police station SHO Sarvan Singh said raids were on to nab the remaining three suspects.

Amritsar Bar Association chief Vipin Dhand, who appeared before the court on behalf of Gandhi, pointed out that his client took only Rs25,000 as fee and did not know about the remaining amount. On the contrary, the Jalandhar Bar Association, where he remained junior vice-president, and is reportedly related to ex-president Ashok Gandhi, did not show any solidarity with Lakhan.

Serving as an advocate for the past nearly six years, Lakhan Gandhi had passed out from the local St Soldier Law College. Using his connections, he got himself appointed as the BJP legal cell chief last year. He reportedly came into contact with the complainant as her sister Manju Khera was his neighbour.

Complainant Charanjit Kaur alleged that Lakhan Gandhi in connivance with her sister and nephew had committed a huge financial fraud against her, including creating a fake FDR of Rs8.5 lakh for securing bail her son from the Punjab and Haryana High Court. In her complaint, she also stated that she kept trusting all the accused blindly, including her sister and nephew who too were involved in the alleged racket.

She said her conversation with Punjab and Haryana High Court lawyer Manish Puri came as an eye-opener to her. She said while the accused (Lakhan) had sought Rs1.5 lakh for him (Manish Puri) from her, Puri had been paid only Rs 70,000.

The complainant said she found that Rs6 lakh taken in the name of SHO in Amritsar too had been taken fraudulently from her. When she approached Axis Bank with FDR details, she was told that this too was fake. She said when she took on the accused over the matter, she was threatened and told that she should not take any step as they were politically well-connected. But she finally lodged the complaint in May this year after which an FIR was formally lodged on September 11.

Meanwhile, Punjab and Haryana Bar Council Chairman Minderjeet Yadav wrote to the DGP, Punjab, alleging that the complaint was false and motivated. “Police personnel have misbehaved with the family of the advocate (Lakhan). The Bar Council condemns the conduct of Amritsar police,” he has written, demanding the release of Lakhan Gandhi and cancellation of the FIR against him.

Bar council head writes to DGP

Punjab and Haryana Bar Council Chairman Minderjeet Yadav wrote to the DGP, Punjab, alleging that the complaint was false and motivated. “Police personnel have misbehaved with the family of the advocate (Lakhan). The Bar Council condemns the conduct of Amritsar police,” he has written.

The case

The complainant, Charanjit Kaur, told the police that the accused cheated her of Rs28.44 lakh on the pretext of getting an FIR against her son, Lovepreet, cancelled and getting him released on bail. Lovepreet was booked by Division B Amritsar police in a case of rape lodged on March 8 last year.