Counterfeit currency racket busted in Gujarat: ‘Fake notes were meant for land deals, donations’ | Ahmedabad News

Ahmedabad: A day after the city crime branch busted a counterfeit currency racket and seized fake notes with a face value of Rs 2.38 crore, investigators on Friday said the accused planned to route the money into land deals and even use it for donations at mass marriages to build social influence and political clout.Officials said the seven accused, all from Surat, were in contact with angadias in Ahmedabad. They were seeking quick property transactions in which the fake currency could be passed off as genuine. “They were trying to identify land deals where large cash components are involved so the counterfeit notes could be pushed without immediate suspicion,” said a senior crime branch officer.Police added that the accused, including yoga instructor Pradip Jotangiya, also intended to use the counterfeit notes for charity. “He wanted to donate cash during mass marriages and other events to gain clout in religious and political circles. This would have helped them establish credibility while circulating fake currency,” the officer said.The accused — Jotangiya, Mukesh Thummar, Ashok Mavani, Ramesh Bhalar, Divyesh Rana, Bharat Kakadiya and Aarti Savaliya — were arrested on Wednesday after more than 42,000 fake Rs 500 notes were recovered from a white SUV in Amraiwadi. The currency was found concealed in bags and packets inside the vehicle, which also bore a ‘VVIP’ sticker.Subsequent raids at a Surat residence led to the recovery of additional counterfeit notes and equipment, including printers, a laptop, a paper-cutting machine and a counting device. A court has remanded all seven accused to 10 days of police custody.Police said the racket had been operational for three months and was allegedly led by Mukesh Thummar, who arranged machinery and sourced specialised paper resembling security thread markings through online platforms. The plan was reportedly conceived after the funds of Shri Satyam Yog Foundation, set up by Jotangiya, dried up.The city crime branch on Thursday booked the accused under sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita pertaining to counterfeiting, possession of forged currency, use of equipment for forging and criminal conspiracy. Further probe is underway to identify others associated with the operation.