‘Govt job’ promise leaves woman ₹14 lakh poorer; absconding accused held in Raipur
Raipur: A promise of government jobs for two family members allegedly turned into a ₹14 lakh fraud for a Bhilai woman, with the accused eventually cutting off contact after collecting the money in instalments. Durg police arrested the 32-year-old accused from his hideout in Urla, Raipur, after tracing him through technical inputs.
The accused, identified as Topchand Dhankar, a resident of Nandway village in Dhamdha area of Durg district, had allegedly assured Khomin Dhruve, 36, of Aryanagar, Kohka, Bhilai, that he could arrange a police department job for her husband, Ashwani Kumar Dhruve, as a driver and for her brother, Ritesh Thakur, as a constable.
According to police, Dhruve lodged a complaint at Smritinagar police station on August 26, alleging that Dhankar had made the job promises in 2024 and subsequently collected ₹14,00,001 from her in instalments. After receiving the money, he allegedly stopped communicating with her.
Police registered a case under Section 318(4) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023, and began tracking the accused. Investigation also revealed that Dhankar had allegedly been involved in another fraud case registered at Nevai police station and that two permanent warrants were pending against him.
Acting on technical information, a police team traced Dhankar to a hideout near Sahil Kirana Stores in Urla, Raipur, and took him into custody. Police recovered from him the mobile phone allegedly used in the crime and related documents.
During interrogation, Dhankar allegedly admitted to taking money from the woman on the pretext of facilitating government job appointments, police said. The pending permanent warrants were also executed against him.
Dhankar was produced before a court on August 27 and sent to judicial custody.
Durg police have appealed to people not to hand over money to anyone claiming to be able to secure government employment without verifying the person’s credentials and the authenticity of the offer. Police also advised people to immediately report demands for money in exchange for government jobs to the nearest police station.
