Two travel agents, Shrikant Mane and Seema Ahuja, who were rendered jobless due to the Covid-19-induced economic slump, connected the beneficiaries from Mansi Stocks and Share Advisors with the mastermind, Mahendra Singh, of the vaccination drive scam.
The probe into the fake drive has also revealed that the staff that had come for the vaccination drive claimed to be from Shivam Hospital, and had particularly asked the beneficiaries to not take pictures. The Borivali police have also booked the stocks and shares company for not taking the permission from the civic authorities for the drive.
Mahendra Singh was a regular customer of a travel firm with which Mane and Ahuja were employed. When the lockdown badly hit the travel sector, Singh called the duo and proposed to arrange a vaccination drive, wherein the two would get a commission.
A senior police official, on condition of anonymity, said the two agents were promised ₹120 from each dose of ₹1,000. He said, “They have claimed that they didn’t know from where the vaccines were procured and how authentic the drive was; they said they too are victims.”
The police visited the stocks company on Saturday and are recording statements of the victims and other accused, to ascertain their role and take appropriate action against them.
Those named in the FIR lodged by BMC officials are Mahendra Singh, Sanjay Gupta, Roshni, Qareem Akbar Ali, Shivam Hospital, Shrikant Mane, Seema Ahuja, along with the owner of Mansi Stocks and Shares.
