Chit fund 'fraudster,' hiding as spiritual guru since 2022, arrested upon returning home

Kasaragod: An alleged chit fund fraudster, on the run since June 2022 after swindling lakhs of rupees from hundreds of small depositors, was arrested by Kasaragod's Ambalathara police.

Kunhichandu Melath Nair (67) of Perumbala in Kasaragod's Chemnad panchayat and director of Kottayam-based Sigs Chits Private Limited, had taken up a job in Karnataka and living under a different identity, said an officer who made the arrest. "We picked him up as soon as he visited his wife's house at Munnam Mile (near the police station)," he said.

However, officers privy to the case said Kunhichandu Nair was in Uttar Pradesh and living as a disciple of a spiritual guru. Kunhichandu Nair has been remanded in judicial custody. The police have initiated steps to trace his assets. Fifty-eight arrest warrants were pending against him at Ambalathara police station and another 12 cases at Hosdurg Police Station.

Cases were also registered in Nileshwar, Chandera, and Chittarikkal police stations in Kasaragod. Complaints of cheating were filed against Sigs Chits in Kannur and Thrissur districts, too.

Police have charged seven officials of Sigstech Chits under Section 420 of the IPC. Vrinda Rajesh (53) of Aymanam in Kottayam is the prime accused. The other accused are Kunhichandu Melath Nair (65) of Perumbala in Chemnad panchayat of Kasaragod; Mercy P Joy (52) of Thottuchalil in Taliparamba; A Suresh Babu (57) of Kuzhakkulangara of Taliparamba; Rajeev Narayanan Nair (54) and his wife Sandhya Rajeev (43) of Aymanam in Kottayam; and Kizhakevittil Kamalakshan (59) of Taliparamba. Kunhichandu Melath Nair's arrest is the first in the case.

In July 2004, Vrinda Rajesh and Kunhichandu Melath Nair co-founded Sigstech Marketing Private Limited, presenting it as a non-governmental organisation (NGO). This company, which operated from Nagampadam in Kottayam, was also listed as a corporate agent for LIC. However, its registered address was at Ameer Complex in Chiravakk, Taliparamba.

Later, in August 2013, Vrinda Rajesh teamed up with Rajeev Narayanan Nair Kulangara to establish Sigs Chits Private Limited. Kunhichandu Melath Nair joined this venture as a director in July 2015, further intertwining their business dealings.

Police said Sigs Chits Private Limited, which started its office in Nileshwar, had been collecting deposits from people by promising exorbitant returns. It was shut down in 2018, triggering an avalanche of complaints. Most of the victims are from the hill panchayats of Kodom-Bellur and Chittarikkal, police said.

"They put in their small savings ranging between Rs 10,000 and Rs 1 lakh in the chit fund," said Mohanan, the writer of Ambalathara police station. The company promised 18% returns and spread its network through word of mouth.

Mary Antony of Paramba in Malom deposited Rs 1.70 lakh in Sigs Chits in 130 instalments from April 18, 2011, to February 20, 2014. Her neighbour K M Sebastian deposited Rs 18,371 in two installments with the company. AM Assisi of Kalichanadukkam deposited Rs 23,380 in the company after it promised higher returns on June 9, 2014.

P Sarojini of Jyothi Nagar deposited Rs 50,000 on January 9, 2017. The company did not return their money. Mercy John from Kalichanadukkam deposited Rs 60,000 on October 26, 2016.

Between February 2014 and May 2018, her neighbour Kamalakshi deposited Rs 52,000 in 96 instalments, which is around Rs 500 each. CV Chandran from the same town deposited Rs 11,904 in May 2013. K Subramanian of Thayanur deposited Rs 13,082 in December 2013; T Vinu from the same place deposited Rs 41,000 in 86 instalments between December 2014 and April 2018.

Binu of Badur in Thayanur deposited Rs 25,000 in May 2016. KV Haridas of Pallikkara in Nileshwar deposited Rs 2 lakh in Sigs Chits in October 2015, and another Rs 5,000 in August 2016.

K K Balakrishnan of Adukathparamb in Madikai deposited Rs 75,000 in April 2016 and another Rs 50,000 in November 2017. His neighbour Prasanna Rajan deposited Rs 2,000 in June 2017.

Initially, 15 small depositors came forward to file complaints. Later, the number of complainants went into the hundreds. A Hosdurg court issued arrest warrants in all the cases.

In October 2018, the Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission in Thrissur asked Vrinda Rajesh to refund Rs 37,000 with a 10% interest rate to Teenu Anne Tony. She had paid Rs 33,000 in 33 monthly installments from March 2012. But when the deposit matured, the company failed to return her money despite multiple requests.

In February 2021, Krishnan Namboodiri, a 63-year-old resident of Thalassery, approached the Kerala High Court seeking action against the company and Vrinda Rajesh after his petition, initially filed in 2018, had stalled.

The High Court then transferred the case to the Munsiff Court in Taliparamba, instructing them to "expedite the process and reach a conclusion without further delay."