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Three held with blank, signed stamp papers worth Rs 68.3 lakh in Pune
The three members of Despande family have licence to issue stamp papers.
Three members of a family from Pune have been remanded to police custody by a local court on Wednesday, after they were arrested by the city police in possession of stamp papers bearing the first stamp of the clerk of the Pune office of the Government of Maharashtra’s treasury department.
The three arrested have been identified as Chinmay Suhas Deshpande, 26; Suhas Moreshwar Deshpande, 59; and Sucheta Suhas Deshpande, 54; all residents of Parasniswada, Kasba Peth, Pune. Chinmay is an engineer by profession, and Suhas and Sucheta, his parents, have both studied till Class 10, police said.
Operating a legacy stamp vending business, the Despandes held a legitimate licence to issue stamp papers. However, the stamp papers are supposed to be signed and stamped by the treasury clerk him/herself.
A police raid on their shop at 8.20 pm on Monday revealed pre-signed blank stamp papers worth Rs 68,38,170. The stamp papers included denominations of Rs 100 and Rs 500.
The shop, called Deshpande Vendors, is located in the Kamala Court building in Budhwar peth, near Lal Mahal.
When asked if there are other suspects from the treasury that maybe involved in the case, senior police inspector Sunil Kalgutkar of Vishrambaug police station said, “We are investigating that angle.”
The stamp vending operation was started by Moreshwar Deshpande, Chinmay Deshpande’s grandfather. “He signed the company over to Sucheta Deshpande who currently owns the operation. They have the required licence. We have to investigate whether the papers (found in the raid) were stamped by the treasury clerk, or by these people themselves. We found a stamp in their office,” said police inspector (crime) Dadasaheb Chudappa of Vishrambaug police station.
A case under Sections 419 (punishment for cheating by personation), 420 (punishment for cheating) and 34 (common intention) of Indian Penal Code (IPC), along with Sections 3, 4, and 6 of the State Emblem of India (Prohibition of Improper Use) Act, 2005 has been registered against the three at Vishrambaug police station.
Not since 2003, when the infamous Abdul Karim Telgi was arrested and his nefarious Rs 20,000 crore fake stamp paper scam exposed, has a stamp paper scandal involving a sizeable sum of money been exposed.
Police, however, are not willing to speculate or reveal anything on the Deshpandes further at this point in time.
