The Sarnath police have arrested a producer from Mumbai’s Film City for allegedly swindling ₹78 lakh under the pretext of producing a Bhojpuri film in Varanasi. The accused had been absconding for the past four years.
He was brought to Varanasi on transit remand and produced before the court, which remanded him to judicial custody for 14 days. Surendra Kumar Yadav, a resident of Rustampur in the Chaubepur area (under Sarnath police station limits), stated in his complaint that his brother, Virendra Kumar Yadav, is the proprietor of M/s Shiva Film and TV House. He alleged that Jaswant Kumar, a producer with ‘Shri J. Soharta Production House,’ had taken ₹78.20 lakh from them under the guise of making a Bhojpuri film.
The accused had promised to return the principal amount along with interest after the film’s release; however, he failed to return the money even after the release and absconded.
Claimed involvement of artists including Pawan Singh
According to the complaint, the accused had claimed that the film ‘Wanted’ was being produced featuring artists such as Bhojpuri actor Pawan Singh, Nidhi Jha, Umesh Singh, Ayyaz Khan, Jaswinder Singh Jassi, Raju Singh, Mahi, and Vijay Tripathi. He had collected the funds under the pretext of securing investment for this very film.
A formal agreement regarding the film’s production had been executed between the two parties, yet neither the investment amount nor the profits were paid by the agreed deadline. Subsequently, the aggrieved party lodged a case at the Sarnath police station.
Arrested from Andheri, Mumbai
Pankaj Kumar Tripathi, the Station House Officer (SHO) of Sarnath, stated that a fraud case had been registered against the accused, Jaswant Kumar—a native of Itbahara in the Gaur police station area of Basti district. He had been absconding for four years. The police arrested him on the night of August 2 from the Patelwani Prajapati Compound in Andheri, Mumbai.
The accused was produced before the Railway Court in Andheri, which granted a 48-hour transit remand. He was then brought to Varanasi and produced before the court, which sent him to jail under 14-day judicial custody. The team that carried out the action included Sarnath Station House Officer Pankaj Kumar Tripathi, Sub-Inspector Avnish Kumar Mishra, Head Constable Shiv Shankar Rai, and Constable Arvind Yadav.
Radhika Goyal is Author of Taxconcept Gurugram head office, for deeply reported tax, gst and income tax articles on issues that matter. He splits her time between New Delhi and Bengaluru, and has worked as a reporter, a podcaster and an editor for publications across India.