Rajkot: A major scam has rocked the Juthal Seva Sahakari Mandali in Maliya Hatina taluka of Junagadh district, where a former secretary of the cooperative society, Kanti Hingrajiya, accused of embezzling Rs 2.09 crore.The irregularities emerged during an inspection ordered by the district registrar. Hingrajiya, who served as secretary from May 2009 to April 2024, is alleged to have carried out flagrant illegalities. The cooperative’s president, Kanaiyalal Kaneria, filed a police complaint detailing the embezzlement. The inspection found that loan repayments from farmer members were never deposited in the cooperative’s bank account. Hingrajiya is also accused of selling the society’s stock of fertilisers and agro-inputs without accounting for the proceeds.Investigators discovered that unauthorized loans had been sanctioned, farmers were given false deposit receipts and financial records were manipulated for personal gain. The loss from the scam is estimated to be Rs 2.09 crore.After the initial findings, an inquiry under Section 93 of the Gujarat Cooperative Societies Act was begun, with R B Jani appointed inquiry officer.Hingrajiya is believed to have perpetrated the embezzlement ever since he joined the society in 2009. He was booked under Indian Penal Code Sections 406 (criminal breach of trust), 409 (criminal breach of trust by public servant), 420 (cheating) and various sections relating to forgery and falsification of accounts, and relevant sections of the Cooperative Societies Act.
