Official held in Rs 2 crore cheating case

He maintained no records and gave fake addresses

According to the Jayanagar police, over the last one-and-half years, Rajagopal had contacted nearly 200 NGOs claiming that he had bagged a Central government funded project on AIDS and tuberculosis patients and sexual workers. He collected huge sums promising that he would pay back the amount once he received the required data.
He assigned responsibilities to the NGOs and managed to repay the amount to a few NGOs based on their statement of expenditure. But failed to pay money to others. He also issued cheques, some of which bounced.

The PSC representative told Deccan Herald: “We were the executing authority of the projects which Rajagopal had initiated. We were in charge of 58 NGOs. He claimed to be a State coordinator for the National Service Trust, New Delhi, funded by the Central government and private agencies, having its office at Directorate of Health Department at Anand Rao circle, Bangalore.”

He contacted the NGOs and assigned duties like collecting data about HIV-AIDS affected people, sexual workers and those suffering from TB, he added.

He would ask the NGOs to show the statement of expenditure based on which he would release the money. The NGOs submitted reports and he made the payment, explained the representative.

The representative added: “Later, the accused claimed that he had bagged another project pertaining to rehabilitation of patients and asked the NGOs for a survey. The NGOs submitted the survey reports in August 2008. He started giving excuses when the NGOs started pressing for payment as per the statement of expenditure. When pressed further, he started avoiding calls and finally absconded.”

Some NGOs had availed loans from banks for the project. The PSC availed Rs 36 lakh loan each for two projects. Rajagopal made full payment for the first project, but for the second project, he paid only Rs  27 lakh and owes Rs 16 lakh.

“He had not maintained records. I grew suspicious when he started avoiding us. When I checked for details of the Trust, it turned out to be the office of Food Processing Ministry, Panchasheel Bhavan, August Kranthi Marg, New Delhi. He had given fake addresses taking the NGOs for a ride.”

DH News Service