Kiran Bhai Patel had taken Jammu and Kashmir’s security and administration for a ride.
Srinagar:
Two men accompanying Gujarat scammer Kiran Bhai Patel, who posed as a senior official in the Prime Minister’s Office, have been summoned for questioning by Jammu and Kashmir police, sources said. One of them, Amit Hitesh Pandya, is the son of a civil servant in Gujarat’s chief minister’s office.
While Kiran Bhai Patel was arrested, Amit Hitesh Pandya and Jay Sitapara – both residents of Gujarat – were allowed to leave as police believed they might have ‘fallen into the trap of the con man’, a source said. policeman on condition of anonymity. .
The men were part of the “official team” led by Kiran Bhai Patel who had taken Jammu and Kashmir’s security and administration for a ride, providing Z-plus security coverage, official hotel accommodation five stars and more.
Amit Pandya’s father, Hitesh Padya, a public relations officer at Gujarat’s chief minister’s office, said he knew his son had been summoned for questioning by Srinagar police. He denied any wrongdoing by his son.
“I have very, very much confidence in my son. He would never engage in such activity,” Mr Pandya said. “I don’t know what the police wrote about him. I wouldn’t comment on anything that I don’t know. If I had solid information, I would definitely have shared it with you,” he said. -he adds.
Police say Amit Pandya’s father had nothing to do with the case. “Amit is 45. He runs a business independently and his father has no connection to him,” an officer said.
The arrest of the scammer, which took place on March 2, was kept secret by the police. His details only emerged after a magistrate sent him into custody last week.
The officer denied reports that three of the crook’s accomplices managed to escape. “We let them go for a few days and called them again for a review. As part of the investigation, we are reviewing everyone, including the police and other people who have information about the activities of the l ‘crook,’ the officer said.
According to sources, besides Amit Hitesh Pandiya and Jay Sitapara, and Trilok Singh from Rajasthan was also staying with Patel at a five-star hotel in Srinagar and posing as an official team from the Prime Minister’s Office.
Kiran Bhai Patel came under suspicion after arriving in Srinagar on a second visit in two weeks. Intelligence agencies alerted the police to the scammer and the police were told to arrest him at a hotel in Srinagar.
Patel is verified on Twitter and has over a thousand followers, including BJP Gujarat General Secretary Pradipsinh Vaghela.
