Medical store owner cheated of Rs 20 lakh in fake news channel deal, robbed at gunpoint
A Nagpur medical store owner lost Rs 20 lakh in a fake news channel partnership and was later robbed at gunpoint when he sought a refund.
Nishant Pramod Gupta (43), who runs Kanchan Medical Store opposite Mayo Hospital in Nagpur, was cheated of Rs 20 lakh after being lured with the promise of becoming a partner in a news channel for hefty profits. When he asked for his money back, he was beaten up, robbed of Rs 50,000 at gunpoint and threatened with death. A case has been registered against seven people at Sitabuldi police station on the complaint of Nishant, a resident of Dosar Bhavan Chowk.
According to police, the accused include Ritesh Borkar, Pramod Bhagchandani, Vijay Khavse, Rinku Pantawane, Umesh Yadav, Sujit Bhoyar and Sunil Manglkar. Pramod Bhagchandani has come into focus again after this case, as it is the third FIR against him in the last four days.
Nishant had met Ritesh Borkar in 2022. Ritesh had introduced himself as the operator of the Maha News 7 channel and convinced Nishant to invest in it, telling him that the channel needed investors to expand and that it would yield good profits. On Ritesh's word, Nishant paid about Rs 20 lakh at different times through cash, online transfer and RTGS. He also borrowed Rs 2 lakh from his acquaintance Anil Patel and gave that to Ritesh as well. Ritesh had spoken of drawing up a partnership deed and had taken a signed blank HDFC Bank cheque from Nishant as security.
Some time later, when Nishant began asking about his investment and the promised profits, Ritesh started stalling. On 15 May 2025, Ritesh called Nishant to the news channel's office, where Umesh Yadav, Sujit Bhoyar, Sunil Manglkar, Rinku Pantawane, Pramod Bhagchandani and Vijay Khavse were also present. When Nishant demanded his money back, the accused allegedly abused and assaulted him. It is alleged that Pramod Bhagchandani threatened him by showing a pistol and took Rs 50,000 in cash from his pocket, while Rinku Pantawane tore his own clothes and threatened to frame Nishant in a false case. Police are investigating the matter.
