Nagpur: Printed paper resembling Rs 500 notes found in Chaitanyeshwar Nagar house, tenant absconding

New details have emerged in the alleged case of large quantities of paper printed to resemble fake currency notes being found in a house in Chaitanyeshwar Nagar, Nagpur. The suspected accused, Pushpam Banda, is still absconding and the police are searching for him.

Banda did not mix much with anyone in the locality. He did not even let the landlord enter the house, and had not paid rent for several months. On Saturday, the landlord opened the house along with some neighbours and local MNS workers. Inside, they saw a large number of printed sheets that looked like genuine Rs 500 notes.

Given the seriousness of the matter, the police were called. After they arrived, sheets printed on both sides like Rs 500 notes, worth about Rs 37 lakh, were found in the house. Sheets printed on only one side, worth about Rs 45 lakh, were also found at the same place.

It is not yet clear why Banda printed fake notes on such a scale. However, going by his behaviour, locals have suspected that he mixed a small number of these printed notes into large sums of genuine currency and passed them off.

Another notable point is that Banda, who had not paid rent for months, had recently deposited Rs 1 lakh in a bank. This emerged from bank papers found in his house. Questions are therefore being raised about where he was using such a large quantity of paper printed like fake notes.

The landlord has also made a startling claim. According to the landlord, Banda had earlier quarrelled with them over rent and had shown a knife to threaten them. A formal complaint was lodged at Wathoda police station, but the police took no action at the time.

Locals say that had the police acted then, the fake note case would have come to light earlier. For now, the police are looking for Banda.