Pune: 3 Booked For Mortgaging Yerawada Educational Land To Secure ₹1.5 Crore Loan

Pune: Three persons, including founder of Rashmi Education Society Neela Manoharlal Gupta, have been booked for allegedly mortgaging the educational institution’s land, worth around ₹50 crore, without authorisation and obtaining a loan of ₹1.5 crore for personal benefit.

The case has been registered at the Vishrantwadi police station following a complaint lodged by Parameshwar Venkatrao Solunke (59), secretary of Rashmi Education Society.

The accused have been identified as Neela Manoharlal Gupta, Rashmi Manoharlal Gupta and Sulabha Modak.

According to the complaint, the alleged offence took place at Rashmi Education Society in Yerawada from January 22, 2026 onwards.

Police said Neela Gupta founded the Rashmi Education Society in 1984 and the trust runs a school from pre-primary to Class 10 on a land parcel leased by the government. In 2007, Gupta allegedly approached the complainant and other individuals, claiming that the school was facing financial difficulties and asking them to join the trust as trustees.

The complainant and three others subsequently became trustees and allegedly spent their own money to transfer the government-leased land in the name of the society in 2010. They also incurred expenses for constructing a boundary wall, shed and school building, the complaint stated.

The complainant alleged that in 2017, Gupta prepared forged resignation letters purportedly showing that the other trustees had resigned and submitted them to the Assistant Charity Commissioner. She subsequently inducted six new trustees, leading to a dispute between the old and new trustees.

The matter was challenged before the Charity Commissioner. According to the complaint, Gupta was subsequently removed from the trust’s board and therefore had no authority over the society’s assets. The dispute is also pending before the High Court.

Despite this, the three accused allegedly executed a registered mortgage deed on January 22, 2026, pledging the society’s land, valued at around ₹50 crore, with Avanse Financial Services, Mumbai, and obtained a loan of ₹1.5 crore.

The complainant alleged that neither permission from the Charity Commissioner nor the District Collector was obtained before mortgaging the property. The land is reportedly classified as Occupant Class-II land, for which the Collector’s permission is required for such a transaction.

Following a complaint submitted to the Economic Offences Wing, the matter was investigated under the supervision of Deputy Commissioner of Police Vivek Masal. Based on the preliminary inquiry, the Vishrantwadi police registered the case.