Saint running cow shelter cheated out of ₹28 lakh - UP

Main accused Hashim had been associated with the ashram and working in the cow shelter for 8 years

Muzaffarnagar (Uttar Pradesh) – Saint Vishnudas, a resident of the Nirmohi Akhada ashram at Shuktirth, a revered pilgrimage site on the banks of the Ganga, has allegedly been defrauded of ₹28.5 lakh. The accused, Hashim, who had been living in the ashram and assisting in cow service for the past eight years, along with his associates, betrayed him. He took
the help of Inter-State gang to carry out the fraud. Police acted swiftly after the complaint and arrested the accused within a day.

Detailed sequence of events:

1. Saint Vishnudas had sold his ancestral land in Baghna village of Hathras district and got a large sum of money. He intended to use this amount to expand his cow shelter (gaushala).

2. As soon as the saint expressed his plan to build a gaushala by selling his personal land, Hashim hatched a conspiracy.

3. The gang led by Hashim first created a fake landowner. A person was falsely named “Nazir” from Sikri in Muzaffarpur district. In reality, no such person existed in Sikri. Abdul Qadir from Haridwar prepared a fake Aadhaar card in Nazir’s name, using Sukhwinder’s photograph. Sukhwinder then impersonated Nazir and met the saint.

4. Two gang members, Dilshad and Faizab, informed the saint that 40 bighas of land was available in Sikri for a gaushala. Subsequently, ₹25 lakh was handed over on 17 February and ₹3.5 lakh on 27 February to Hashim and his associates at the ashram itself.

5. The next day, the saint was given a fake agreement. During this time, a fake official named Ritesh prepared documents after taking ₹26,000 and even conducted a land measurement in front of the saint to gain his trust.

6. When Saint Vishnudas visited Sikri to inspect the 40 bighas of land, he found a person named Mourad watering the field. Mourad informed him that they had purchased and registered the land 15 days earlier and that no person named Nazir lived there. The saint realised that he had been cheated.

7. He immediately lodged a complaint at the police station. The police formed a special team to trace Hashim and his gang. After tracking their mobile numbers, they were located near an isolated poultry farm on Tughalkapur road. On 19 March, the police surrounded the location and arrested all of them. The arrested included the main accused Hashim along with Praveen, Dilshad, Sukhwinder, Faizab, Ravish, and Abdul Qadir.

8. During the raid, the police seized ₹22 lakh in cash, two fake Aadhaar cards in the names of Nazir and Ritesh, a computer, printer, scanner, notary documents, copies of forged papers, and used SIM cards.