₹6.28 crore fraud accused couple held for flying abroad on ‘missing’ passports

A couple accused in a ₹6.28 crore fraud case was arrested in Surat after allegedly gaming the system — reporting their surrendered passports as “missing”, getting fresh ones issued, and quietly travelling abroad in violation of bail conditions.

Ghanshyam Pambhar and his wife Ashmita, originally from Lodhika in Rajkot, had set up Dhananjay Finance in 2021, promising investors quick, high returns. For many, it appeared to be an opportunity; for some, it was savings built over years. Police say those hopes collapsed when the couple allegedly collected large sums—₹6.28 crore in total—and shut shop, leaving investors with little more than unanswered calls.

When complaints mounted, a cheating case was registered at the Rajkot Taluka police station. The couple secured anticipatory bail from the Gujarat High Court, with clear conditions: surrender their passports and do not leave the country without permission.

But investigators say the couple found a way around those restrictions.

Their movements came under scrutiny after one of the victims, lawyer Ashok Koyani, learnt that the Pambhars had travelled to Dubai and possibly other destinations. For investors still struggling to recover their money, the revelation was jarring. Koyani approached the Gujarat High Court and alerted the Rajkot police about the alleged violation.

What followed exposed a carefully constructed workaround. While their original passports remained deposited with the police — as required — the couple had filed complaints at the Dindoli police station in Surat, claiming the documents were “missing”. On the strength of those complaints, they obtained fresh passports from the Surat passport office.

“We seized the new passports used by the accused to travel abroad,” Surat Assistant Commissioner of Police N P Gohil said, confirming that the couple had indeed left the country despite bail restrictions.

Police have now booked them under multiple sections, including those related to cheating, forgery, furnishing false information, and fraudulent use of documents, along with provisions of the Passport Act, 1967, and the Immigration and Foreigners Act, 2025.

Acting on the complaint, the Dindoli police arrested the couple from their residence in Mota Varachha in April. They were produced before a court and remanded to two days of police custody.

For investigators, the case has widened beyond just the couple. “We are trying to find out who else may be involved and how fresh passports were issued in such circumstances,” Dindoli police inspector P L Vaghela said.

For the victims, however, the focus remains unchanged — recovering what they lost and seeing accountability catch up with those they trusted.