Brahmavar police have arrested Kaushalya, a woman accused of defrauding two individuals of over Rs1.45 crore by falsely promising to arrange a government subsidy loan under the Prime Minister’s Employment Generation Programme (PMEGP).
According to the complaint, Saritha Lewis (39), a resident of Herady, Barkur Post, Yadtadi village, was introduced to Kaushalya through Anjaline D’Silva in November 2023. Kaushalya convinced Saritha, despite her initial doubts, that she could secure a PMEGP subsidy loan.
Kaushalya allegedly demanded money under various pretexts related to loan processing. Trusting her, Saritha transferred amounts in multiple installments—both via bank accounts and in cash—to Kaushalya’s associates, including her husband Sandesh, and others named Prakash, Ashish Shetty, Rajendra Byndoor, Geeta, Harini, Navya, Kumar, Malathi, Praveen, Hariprasad, Nagaraj, and Bharati Singh. The total amount paid by Saritha reached Rs80.72 lakh.
Kaushalya similarly lured Saritha’s relative, Anjaline D’Silva, promising a PMEGP loan and collected Rs65 lakh through the same network. The accused even impersonated a bank official over phone calls to build trust and falsely promised a Rs4 crore subsidy loan.
Police registered a case at Brahmavar Police Station, took Kaushalya into custody, and the investigation into her accomplices is ongoing.
