The Ahmedabad Police on Thursday arrested another accused in connection with the seizure of Fake Indian Currency Notes (FICN) having a face value of Rs 2.48 crore, taking the number of arrests in the case to eight.
Acting on a tip off, the Ahmedabad crime branch arrested Bhavesh Gajera, 46, a resident of Kamrej in Surat and native of Amreli in Saurashtra. Gajera runs an air condition business and has been associated with main conspirator self-styled godman Pradeep Jotangiya (Yogi Maharaj) of Surat since 2023. Gajera was produced before the Ahmedabad District Court, which sent him to police remand for six days.
According to police, Jotangiya had collected Rs 30 lakh from his nearest disciples for printing FICN and circulating the notes in the market. The accused were planning to use 50 per cent of the profit from the illegal activity to set up another ‘Ashram’, the Ahmedabad crime branch said.
Speaking to The Indian Express, Ahmedabad Crime Branch police inspector S J Jadeja said, “Bhavesh Gajera had invested Rs 6 lakh in printing and circulating the FICN notes in the denomination of Rs 500. While another accused Ramesh Balar had invested Rs 20 lakh, Mukesh Thummer invested Rs 5 lakh and the remaining arrested persons invested between Rs 2 lakh and Rs 4 lakh.”
Jadeja said that the ‘godman’, Pradeep Jotangiya, had given the green signal to plan at a meeting at his ‘ashram’ in Surat.
“In the meeting of key conspirators, it was decided that 50 per cent of the profit will be used to purchase land for setting up another ashram and the remaining amount will be equally distributed. The accused have circulated FICN in the face value of Rs 20 lakh, in Rs 500 denomination. They identified agents in different parts of Gujarat and handed them FICN and collected 30 per cent Indian currency notes as commission,” Jadeja explained.
After collecting Rs 30 lakh, the accused had purchased three printers, paper cutting machines and imported A4 size high quality paper with security thread from a Chinese online shopping site, jadeja said.
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“They made payments of Rs 17.50 lakh in crypto to a paper seller company for printing paper. They received paper and ink stocks by January end and started printing FICN in February. Each of the eight arrested accused used to carry a single note in an envelope to show it to agents or customers. Later, they would hand over FICN bundles to the agents, who had circulated the notes in Surat and Ahmedabad. We are trying to identify the agents involved in the racket,” Jadeja said.
Arrest of ‘godman’, his ‘disciples’
Sources said that Jotangiya had been running Yoga classes in Rajkot before moving to Surat in 2019. In Surat, he started a small yoga class and gained popularity among people, mostly from Saurashtra. Later, he got a piece of land from one of his disciples at Dhoran Pardi village in Kamrej and started an ashram, where he took Yoga sessions. His brother is running the Yoga centre in Rajkot.
Acting on a tip off, Ahmedabad Crime branch stopped a car at Amraiwadi village in Ahmedabad on March 19 and recovered FICN with a face value of around Rs 2.20 crore. Police arrested Mukesh Thummer, Ashok Mavani, Ramesh Balar, Divyesh Rana, Pradeep Jotangiya and a woman, all residents of Surat. Acting on information from the accused, a team of the Ahmedabad Crime Branch, along with the Surat Crime Branch, carried out raids at a house on Varachha Road and arrested Bharat Patel. The cops had seized FICN with a face value of Rs 28 lakh from the house of Thummer. On March 20, the seven accused were produced before court which sent them to police remand for 10 days.
Kamal Saiyed is a senior Correspondent for The Indian Express, providing extensive, on-the-ground coverage from Surat and the broader South Gujarat region and the Union territories of Daman, Diu & Dadra Nagar Haveli. With a reporting career at the publication spanning back to 2007, he has established himself as a high-authority voice on the industrial, social, and political pulse of one of India’s fastest-growing urban hubs.
Expertise
Industrial & Economic Beat: Based in the "Diamond City," Saiyed offers expert reporting on the diamond and textile industries. His work tracks global market shifts (such as De Beers production changes), local trade policies, and the socio-economic challenges facing the millions of workers in Surat’s manufacturing hubs.
Civic & Infrastructure Coverage: He consistently reports on urban development and public safety in Surat, including:
Traffic & Urban Planning: Monitoring the city's 13-fold increase in traffic violations and the implementation of new municipal drives.
Public Safety: Investigative reporting on infrastructure failures, fire safety NOC compliance in schools and commercial buildings, and Metro rail progress.
Political Reporting: Tracking the shifting dynamics between the BJP, Congress, and AAP in South Gujarat and the neighboring Union Territories (Daman, Diu, and Dadra & Nagar Haveli).
Crime beat: Armed with a good source network Saiyed has been able to bring out the human side of crime stories in his region ... Read More
