Mumbai Fraud Case: Pant Nagar Police File FIR Against Siddhivinayak Society Office Bearers

A fraud case has been registered at Pant Nagar Police Station against nine office bearers of Siddhivinayak Co-operative Housing Society in Ghatkopar (East) following a complaint filed by retired police constable Vijay Pandurang Shirodkar (62). The case was registered based on an order from the 50th Metropolitan Magistrate Court in Vikhroli.

Since 2013, the redevelopment of six buildings (Nos. 316 to 321) under MHADA was initiated by the housing society. In May 2019, members who agreed to redevelopment vacated their flats and were paid rent by the developer. However, in 2020, the developer defaulted on two to three months' rent payments.

To compensate for the delay, in July 2020, the society's managing committee withdrew funds from the society's Fixed Deposit (FD) account without holding a General Body Meeting and distributed ₹50,000 to each member as temporary rent.

The complainant, Vijay Shirodkar, was a society member but was denied this compensation amount despite repeated requests. He alleged that the managing committee deliberately delayed his payment until October 9, 2024, causing him mental harassment.

When he filed a complaint at Pant Nagar Police Station, society secretary Rajani Awhad messaged his wife on WhatsApp and instructed them to collect a cheque of ₹50,000. However, the complaint states that if the developer borrowed this amount as a loan, it should have been recovered from them and deposited back into the society's bank account.

Following Shirodkar’s statement, a fraud case under relevant sections of BNS was registered against, Bhiva S. Palav (77 years) – Chairman, Rajani D. Awhad (55 years) – Secretary, Gorakhnath P. Chapate (65 years) – Joint Secretary, Nayan P. Thakkar (58 years) – Treasurer, B.V. Gosavi (55 years) – Managing Committee Member, Devendra B. Walawalkar (65 years) – Managing Committee Member, Laxman D. Koli (65 years) – Managing Committee Member, Yogesh H. Mehta (65 years) – Managing Committee Member, Ramesh B. Joshi (55 years) – Managing Committee Member.

The case is under investigation, and further action will be taken based on the findings of the police.