Fake gold loan scam in Panchkula: No bail for accused jeweller
Before approving the loan, the bank got the ornaments tested from the accused, who was empanelled with the bank as a valuer; after he assessed the gold’s value and issued a certificate, a loan was sanctioned
A local court has rejected the regular bail application of a jewellery shop owner who was booked in as many as 26 FIRs between 2022 and 2023 in connection with securing gold loans against fake jewellery.
In one of the FIRs, the accused, Deepak Bhola, aged 45, proprietor of a jewellery shop in Sector 9, is accused of supplying counterfeit gold to a co-accused, Neeru Kohli, who then allegedly pledged it with Bank of India to secure a loan of ₹6 lakh.
Before approving the loan, the bank got the ornaments tested from Bhola, who was empanelled with the bank as a valuer. After he assessed the gold’s value and issued a certificate, a loan was sanctioned.
Subsequent investigations revealed that another loan of ₹3.92 lakh was disbursed to Kohli the following month against more counterfeit gold, all evaluated by Bhola himself. The total loss to the bank from this specific instance is estimated at ₹11.16 lakh.
After Kohli defaulted on loan repayment despite several notices, the bank decided to auction the gold and got it re-appraised from another goldsmith, who revealed that it was fake and underweight. This exposed the alleged collusion between Kohli and Bhola.
Of the total 26 FIRs against Bhola, 22 were registered at the Sector 14 police station and four more at the Sector 20 police station, involving charges of cheating, forgery, criminal conspiracy and criminal breach of trust.
The public prosecutor vehemently opposed Bhola’s bail, emphasising the gravity of the offence and his alleged involvement in numerous similar scams, portraying him as the “kingpin of a big scam causing huge loss to different financial institutions”.
In contrast, the defence argued Bhola’s innocence, claiming his implication was solely based on the statements of the co-accused and that no incriminating material was recovered from him.
However, the court of sessions judge Ved Parkash Sirohi, after carefully considering the serious nature of the allegations and the potential scale of the fraudulent activities, found no grounds to grant bail.
