The new-age economy brings new-age frauds. This one was a con riding on a catchphrase — the last-mile connectivity. Who won’t want it? On paper, it was a brilliant idea: app-based motorcycle taxis that will take people to places where they can’t find other means easily, in sprawling Noida and Ghaziabad as well as congested small towns such as Baghpat and Meerut. The company, BikeBot, had an equally clever plan to finance the business. It very much looked like an idea whose time has come. But it turned out to be just another ponzi scheme.
A woman is on the run after duping lakhs
of investors of nearly Rs 15,000 crore. Today, she is the most wanted criminal in Uttar Pradesh, carrying a bounty of Rs 5 lakh on her head.
How the scam unfolded
Deepti Bahal was the principal of a college in Baghpat and lived at Loni in Ghaziabad. Her husband Sanjay Bhati and his family members incorporated a real estate company called Garvit Innovative Promoters Limited (GIPL) in 2010 in Greater Noida and Deepti became a director. However, it has been claimed that she resigned from the company in 2017, the year it launched a bike taxi business called Bike Bot.
The Bike Bot scheme promised large returns to customers on their investment in motorcycles that were supposed to be used as two-wheeler taxis. Investors were asked to pay Rs 62,100 for one bike. The company offered an EMI of Rs 5,175 per month and fixed the rental at Rs 4,590 per bike per month. The scheme also included a monthly rental income bonus of 5% per bike.
To gain the trust of investors, the company signed an agreement with them, assuring them their money was safe and the return on investment was secure.