The seized luxury cars. (Express Photos)A deputy commandant of the Border Security Force is in the dock for allegedly orchestrating a Rs 140 crore scam in Gurgaon. A Special Investigation Team (SIT) has found that the main accused, Praveen Yadav, allegedly posed as an IPS officer on deputation on the National Security Guard’s campus in Manesar and allegedly conned contractors on the pretext of allotting tenders for construction work on the campus.
Police have recovered Rs 13.81 crore in cash and six luxury cars (Harrier, Range Rover, Jeep, BMW, Safari and Volvo) from his possession. Earlier this week, police had raided the residence of a relative of Yadav and recovered gold worth over Rs 1 crore. The relative is absconding.
Yadav was arrested on January 13, with his wife, Mamta Yadav, sister Ritu Raj Yadav, and an associate, Dinesh Kumar. Police said they have received five complaints from five construction firm owners, to whom he allegedly gave forged letters of intent and tender contracts and made them deposit money in a private bank account in the name of “office of GC (Garrison) station HQ, NSG Manesar” as earnest money for tender allocation.
Gurgaon Police spokesperson Subhash Boken said the probe revealed that Yadav was posted on deputation on the NSG campus in 2021 and since he was involved with construction work, he was in touch with several contractors and knew the tendering processes. “He had suffered a loss of Rs 50 lakh in the share market and decided to recoup his losses by resorting to fraud. He told contractors he would offer them lucrative contracts for construction of road, fence, installation of electric poles, solar panels on NSG campus. He used to drive luxury cars to impress people and build a rapport with them,” said Boken.
Best of Express Premium
Police said his sister and brother-in-law lived on the NSG campus and with the help of his sister, who worked in a private bank, Yadav allegedly managed to open a fraudulent bank account and got money transferred. He had also opened a company and named himself, his wife, and his sister as directors, said police.
A police officer said, “As he was earlier posted at the NSG, he could use his ID card to enter the campus. Telling contractors he was an IPS officer, he gave forged work allotment letters, pay orders and work permits with NSG letterheads. He had applied for voluntary retirement from the BSF and was planning to flee.”
- The Indian Express website has been rated GREEN for its credibility and trustworthiness by Newsguard, a global service that rates news sources for their journalistic standards.
