Sendhwa (Madhya Pradesh): A new development has emerged in the case of missing agricultural produce from a warehouse in Sendhwa after traders named in an FIR came forward to level counter-allegations against the warehousing company.
Traders Kailash Khandelwal, Nilesh Khandelwal, and Piyush Khandelwal have denied allegations of taking bank loans against pledged agricultural goods, secretly removing them and replacing them with husk and soil to commit a fraud of Rs 19.76 crore.
Submitting applications at the SP office and Sendhwa Rural police station on Thursday night, they demanded criminal action against officials of Star Agri Warehousing Company.
Kailash Khandelwal said his firm's goods were stored at a Baniyahar warehouse against a bank loan, with Star Agri Warehousing Company solely responsible for security, lock and key, and issuing bank receipts. He argued the company must be held accountable if stock went missing.
When the warehouse lock was opened in the presence of police on July 24, the stock was found missing. The traders accused the company's MD, CEO, manager, and staff of theft, embezzlement, and fraud, alleging company officials threatened them and misled the bank.
They also claimed the company and its officials previously faced a CBI case involving an alleged Rs 74.77 crore mustard oil scam.
The original case was registered by Sendhwa Rural police on a complaint from Star Agri Warehousing and Collateral Management Limited, alleging pledged produce in three Baniyahar godowns was systematically sold off using fake government seals and forged documents.
Five named suspects, including Chetna Khandelwal, Nilesh Khandelwal, Kailash Khandelwal, Piyush Khandelwal, and warehouse supervisor Devraj Rathore, have been booked under sections 316(4), 318(4), 61(2), and 3(5) of the BNS.
Inspection on July 24 found only husk, soybean remnants, and cotton bales against nearly 95,045 bags recorded as pledged stock.
The FIR alleges Rathore made incorrect stock register entries and facilitated unauthorised removal of goods.
Police registered a case treating the matter as a serious financial crime, with further legal action pending investigation.
