Rourkela couple 'dupe' 300 tribals of Rs 39 lakh

Rourkela: More than 300 tribal women, who have been allegedly duped of Rs 39 lakh by a couple, met Sundargarh SP on Wednesday and requested his intervention for recovery of their money. The couple had promised the women good returns if they invested in a proposed rice mill project in Biramitrapur.
The women had reportedly lodged a complaint with Biramitrapur police station about one-and-half month ago, but in vain.The accused, Marsalan Surin and his wife Israni Surin, are on the run. According to their complaint, the couple had convinced the tribal women to invest as shareholders in a large rice mill that they were going to set up in the locality.
Gullible women from Brahamanimara, Laokathi, Gandhi Road and Kaidaiba of Biramitrapur, all members of Jyoti, a SHG, fell into their trap.
The couple helped the tribal women in getting their loan sanctioned from banks and financial institutions. Initially, the accused paid them interest, following which more women invested in the rice mill.
The accused had shown them a vacant plot of land as the site for the mill.
The women started doubting the intentions of the couple when no construction came up on the land. The couple cited excuses for the delay. In their police complaint, the women have said that the couple have shifted to a quarter in Sector 20, Rourkela.
"I have directed Biramitrapur police to take up the case," said SP (Sundargarh) Nikhil Kanoria. A large number of women have become victims. They have no document to establish their claim," Kanoria said. However, police will investigate and nab the culprit, he added.