Mumbai: IPS officer’s husband booked in Rs 24 crore property fraud

In July 2020 the accused made the complainant sign a fake ‘Agreement for Sale’ in the presence of purported officials. Representation Pic/istock

The Economic Offences Wing (EOW) of the Mumbai police has registered a case of cheating, forgery, and criminal conspiracy against 11 accused, including Purshottam Chavan, the estranged husband of an IPS officer associated with the Maharashtra police. Chavan is already in judicial custody after being arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) last year in connection with a Rs 263 crore income tax refund fraud case.

During its investigation, the ED found that Chavan was not only involved in money laundering but had also duped several people by promising low-cost government quota flats. Since this aspect could not be probed by the ED, the agency shared the details with the EOW. After months of scrutiny, the EOW has registered a case against Chavan for allegedly cheating around 19 people, who have recorded their statements. According to the FIR, the total amount involved is Rs 24,78,66,950.

Sources close to the IPS officer have stated that she has already filed for divorce, citing grounds such as mental cruelty, financial harassment, incompatibility, her husband's medical issues, and concealment of financial dealings. mid-day has not revealed the officer's name, as sources indicate she, as of now, has no known links to the case.

According to the FIR, the complainant stated that he came into contact with Purushottam Chavan through family friends in 2019. These friends claimed that Chavan could procure low-cost flats under the government quota and that several people had successfully purchased flats through him. They assured the complainant that the flats would be registered at the registration office and that officers from the concerned government department would process the sale transactions both online and offline.

The complainant explained that, after completing all the necessary documents, buyers would receive a possession letter for the purchased flat along with the original purchase contract documents from the concerned office, after which they could move into the flat. However, he noted that the process typically took a long time to complete. Chavan also emphasised that the house purchase process should remain confidential, as many others were vying for government quota flats.

"Chavan showed me one project in Parel, which was under construction, but I declined because the flat prices were too high. After that, my wife and I visited another project near Rani Baug, which was also under construction, but we weren't interested in that project either. Then we looked at another luxury project in Prabhadevi, which we liked. We decided on a 3 BHK flat there. After estimating the market price at the time, we found that the flat would cost around R7 to R7.5 crore. However, Chavan told us he could get it for R3.5 crore under the government quota, and we agreed," the complainant's statement, as recorded in the FIR, reads.

According to the complainant, between January 2020 and March 2024, he transferred R3.37 crore to Purushottam Chavan, believing he was securing a legitimate government quota flat. In July 2020, Chavan called the complainant to his residence above the Colaba police station and had him sign a fake ‘Agreement for Sale' in the presence of purported officials.

In September 2020, Chavan took the complainant to the Thane Sub-Registrar's office, where he underwent biometric registration, believing it to be an official property registration process. By March 2021, the complainant was handed photocopies of registration documents, supposedly stamped by government housing officials.

Until then, the complainant was under the impression that the deal was genuine. However, he was shocked to learn the truth only in May 2024, when Chavan was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED). The EOW FIR states that Chavan has similarly duped around 19 people under the pretence of offering low-cost government quota flats, amounting to over R24 crore. He had promised flats in prime locations such as Prabhadevi, Parel, Thane, and Dadar.