Vadodara: Gorwa police on Friday arrested a man who allegedly cheated many citizens out of Rs 40 lakh by promising them flats under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (PMAY).The accused, Harish Chauhan, was arrested in Karjan and produced before a local court, which remanded him in police custody for five days. According to a complaint filed by Varsha Pathak, a resident of Samta Road, she and her husband met Chauhan at his office in Jan 2025 as they were looking to buy a flat. Chauhan claimed he was an agent of the Vadodara Municipal Corporation (VMC) and assured them a PMAY house in Subhanpura. When Pathak asked to see the flat, Chauhan told her she would first have to complete some procedures and obtain an allotment letter. He then demanded money on various pretexts, after which Pathak paid him Rs 6.83 lakh in instalments. Chauhan gave her a bogus receipt for the application form and a letter bearing fake VMC stamps. After Pathak sought possession of the flat, Chauhan kept delaying and eventually closed his office. Police said that at least 15 other people were similarly cheated, with Chauhan allegedly fleeing with Rs 40 lakh. He switched off his phone before going underground, prompting police to launch a search.
