A film makeup artiste has alleged that 10 persons from Andhra Pradesh and Odisha cheated him of ₹5.25 crore, invested in a distillery company in Odisha.
One of the company directors, V. Ratna Shekar, died of heart failure 15 days ago, reportedly unable to bear the huge fraud. The victim had approached the Odisha and A.P. police seeking justice and urged them to take action against the accused.
The makeup man, Inturi Sambaiah, along with two others – Ratna Shekar and Ramakrishna – purchased M/s. Sri Sakthi Distilleries Private Limited, situated in a 3.5-acre plot at Komatalpetta village, Rayagada district in Odisha, some two years ago for ₹5.25 crore.
They made an agreement with Rachakonda Umamaheswara Rao, director of the firm and one of the major shareholders of the company. Mr. Sambaiah and his partners had appointed one Panchumarthi Achyutha Ramaiah, of Kanuru, Vijayawada, as director.
But, Mr. Ramaiah allegedly colluded with Mr. Umamaheswara Rao, misused the company funds and transferred the shares to his name and appointed new directors, including his wife P. Soni Krishna. Following a complaint, the Rayagada Superintendent of Police directed the Chandili police to register a case in May this year, Mr. Sambaiah told the media on Friday.
“Cases registered”
“The Odisha police registered cases against Umamaheswara Rao, Achyutha Ramaiah, Ananta Venkateshwarlu Sanapala, Shyam Prasada Reddy Botta, Tati Reddy Tamma, Soni Krishna, S. Vardhini, S. Lalitha Kumari, natives of Visakhapatnam and Krishna districts and others,” the makeup man said.
“We approached the local court in Odisha, which directed to book cases and complete investigation in two months. But, no action has been taken against the accused so far. When contacted, the AP Director General of Police N. Sambasiva Rao said he has entrusted the matter to CID police,” he said.
“I request the police to keep a vigil on the movements of the accused, and see that no other person is cheated by them”, the 75-year-old artiste said.
