Over 200 complaints of alleged fraud against Iranian businessmen by Indians were received by the embassy
Iranian nationals are slowly becoming the victims of mass fraud in India. According to the Iranian Embassy in the Capital, an estimated 200 cases of duped Iranian nationals have come to the notice of the embassy with a staggering $350 million being taken from them fraudulently.
Speaking exclusively to DNA, Dr Hossein Bamiri, the commercial counselor at Iranian Embassy, said. "I have lived here for 15 years, and I have encouraged my countrymen to come here. But everything seems to have changed after US led sanctions on Iran. I receive one email every day of Iranian businessmen being cheated, and even though I tell everyone that the fraudsters do not represent India, I am becoming increasingly fearful of encouraging my countrymen to do business here."
Dr Bamiri added that the issue has become so alarming in Iran that the embassy has now a complied list of Iranians who have allegedly been 'duped'.
The embassy has been particularly concerned regarding a case regarding Iranian national Ali Kaboos Shakeri. Shakeri, owner of Tehran-based Wist General Trading unit, filed a complaint with the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in September 2016 where he alleged that he had been duped by Indian fraudsters of Rs 18.64 cr.
On the basis of his complaint, CBI officials have initiated a probe against UCO bank officials and the accused Indian fraudsters.
CBI documents reveal that Shakeri was introduced to a Delhi-resident Rajesh Khanna three years ago. In the introduction, Khanna told Shakeri he was a world supplier of dry fruits, and the two struck a deal. Khanna was supposed to send 3,10,800 kilograms of cashew nuts to Teheran, and in return Shakeri would pay around Rs 18 crore within 30 days of placing the order which was on January 20, 2015. Khanna was supposed to receive the money after providing the required documents in support of the import. CBI sources revealed that right after Khanna received the money, the phone numbers that Shakeri used to contact Khanna fell silent.
The complaint states that in mid-2015, Shakeri's representatives came to India to confirm what had happened, but they found that UCO bank had allegedly released the money without Khanna providing the necessary proof.
Queries sent to UCO bank did not elicit a response till the filing of this story.
Shakeri then contacted the Iranian Embassy, and the Embassy got in touch with the CBI who then filed a case in September 2016 against Khanna, Pradeep Kumar Thakur, Gandass Dharmvir, Sanjay Kumar, Praveen Kumar and OPV Prasanna Kumar, their private companies, and unknown officials of UCO bank.
Dr Sumit Sharma, legal advisor to the Iranian mission in India, said the duping cases have taken a devastating toll on families in Iran. "In some cases the businessmen victims were poached in Indian Embassy in Iran like the case of Bikadi, and in others they were poached in the Iranian Embassy in India. The defrauding has ripped apart families, and more importantly the image of India as a business-friendly country is being ruined," Sharma said.
According to Sharma, the reaction by authorities in India has been disappointing. He said the Embassy had written to the Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) but nothing concrete came out after this.
Phone calls and emails sent to senior DGFT officials did not elicit a response till the filing of this story.
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