Susairaj ran a travel agency in Mumbai.
By Dileep Thekkethil
Kannada actress and model Maria Susairaj, who ran a travel agency in Mumbai, was arrested by the Gujarat police for alleged cheating Hajj pilgrims of Rs. 2.11crore.
According to a report published by The Indian Express, the actress who is currently under the custody of the Ahmedabad Crime Branch has been running a travel agency in Mumbai named Parapan Tours and Travels that reportedly duped a Vadodara-based tour agency La-Raib Tours of Hajj tickets worth 2.11 crore. The complaint filed against her also accuses her of fleeing after receiving the money.
This is not the first time the actress is in the headlines for the wrong reasons. Earlier, Maria Susairaj was convicted by a court for “destroying evidence” in the 2008 murder case of TV producer Neeraj Grover in Mumbai. Her fiancé, a naval officer named Emile Jerome Matthew, was convicted of murdering the TV executive.
RN Patel, Police Inspector of DCB, Vadodara said, “The fraud occurred in February when Susairaj was approaching Haj tour operators, offering a discount on bulk bookings. She approached the La-Raib Tour agency in Panigate in Vadodara, through her partnership form Parapan Tours and Travels, located in Powai in Mumbai and enticed them with an offer of discount up to Rs 4000 per ticket.”
He also added that the case has been handed over to the Vadodara crime branch for further investigation.
The owner of La-Raib Tours, Ashfaq Pasaliya, had booked 1200 Hajj tickets with Susairaj’s firm, with each ticket costing Rs 17,500. Pasaliya was quoted by The Indian Express saying that the neither Susairaj nor anyone in her agency responded to calls, which forced them to file a complaint.
He also added, “The customers looking forward to traveling to Hajj this year had paid the entire advance for tickets and we had partnered with Susairaj’s firm in Mumbai that promised to book confirmed air tickets on our behalf. However, the moment we transferred the money to the firm, we were told the tickets would be confirmed but did not hear from her again. On the day of the scheduled travel, the company conveyed that the tickets had been cancelled. After much reluctance, they handed over a refund cheque of Rs 80 lakhs, but it bounced. We waited for a few days and filed the complaint.”
Even though Susairaj was convicted and sentenced for three years in prison for the murder case, she spent less than a day after the sentencing as she had spent a substantial time in jail while the trial was underway. Now, it seems like the Kannada actress will have to once again revisit the jail as she has been charged for fraud under the IPC.