Surat: A 72-year-old city-based businessman has alleged that he was cheated of Rs 6.75 crore by a mother-son duo who promised him a 25% stake in their amusement company but later issued forged documents.An FIR for cheating, forgery and criminal conspiracy has been registered at Vesu police station, and the Economic Offences Cell (EOW) of Surat police has taken over the investigation.According to the complaint, Sadanand Mandhyan, a resident of Vesu who owns an animal feed manufacturing firm in Bengaluru, was approached by accused Nisha Mahendu and her son Rajat Mahendu, who claimed to run an amusement venture named ‘Woop’ and were developing a family entertainment centre project in Bengaluru.Police said Nisha had befriended Mandhyan’s wife around a decade ago, which helped the duo gain the family’s trust. In July 2024, the accused visited Mandhyan’s residence and sought funds, claiming the project was nearing completion but facing a financial crunch.They allegedly offered Mandhyan a 25% equity stake in Woop Amusement Private Limited and told him he could invest as an unsecured loan after the shares were allotted. Trusting them, Mandhyan transferred Rs 6.75 crore between Aug 2024 and May 2025.In April 2025, the accused sent him documents, including a purported board resolution allotting 25,000 shares and an SH-4 form for share transfer. Based on these, Mandhyan believed he had become a shareholder in the company.However, in Sep 2025, the accused reduced his shareholding to 18,000 shares, citing an increase in project costs. When he objected, they maintained that the revision was necessary.Police said Mandhyan grew suspicious after the accused failed to provide returns and did not share details of project expenditure despite repeated requests. In Nov 2025, his chartered accountant sought a 9% return, which was allegedly not paid.Ahead of a shareholders’ meeting scheduled on February 13, 2026, Mandhyan planned to attend but was informed a day earlier that he was not eligible as he had not submitted the SH-4 form.Subsequent verification with the Registrar of Companies (RoC) revealed that no official process had been followed to register him as a shareholder and that the documents provided to him were forged, police said.Based on his complaint, police registered an FIR under relevant sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita for cheating, forgery and criminal conspiracy.
