In a major corporate fraud case, the Karkhana branch of Orange Auto, an authorised dealer for Tata Motors, has alleged that its Electric Vehicle (EV) sales head swindled the company of more than ₹2 crore. The Hyderabad Central Crime Station (CCS) police have registered a cheating case, with the accused and his immediate family currently absconding.
The Anatomy of the Alleged Scam
According to a formal complaint filed by A Pranav Kumar, the Chief General Manager of the branch, the fraud was detected within the EV sales operations. The alleged mastermind is identified as Arani Varun, who joined the organisation as Team Leader of EV Sales on November 6, 2024.
The complaint details a systematic scheme where Varun is accused of directly collecting payments from customers, bypassing company protocols. He allegedly persuaded customers to pay him cash or make online transfers to his accounts by promising them additional discounts, a clear violation of company policy.
The misappropriated funds were reportedly diverted into his personal bank account, his wife Arani Maria Sofia's account, and accounts belonging to other relatives and individuals.
Forgery and Falsified Records
To execute and conceal the fraud, the accused allegedly created a web of forged documents. The complaint lists fake Aadhaar cards, PAN cards, marriage certificates, and GST certificates used to facilitate the illicit transactions.
Furthermore, fake payment receipts were generated outside the company's official system and issued to customers to make the transactions appear legitimate. This was despite clear company rules, displayed on notice boards, mandating that all payments must be made at the authorised cash counter against official receipts, in line with government restrictions on cash transactions above ₹2 lakh.
How the Fraud Came to Light and Police Action
The scam unraveled when a customer reported paying cash directly to Varun and raised concerns about an online payment being diverted to another customer's account using false paperwork.
Orange Auto's management launched an internal investigation involving customer outreach and a review of delivery records and documents. This verification process uncovered evidence of the systematic fraud. When confronted, Varun and his family members became unreachable, their phones switched off and their residence found locked and vacated.
The company informed the police that the identified fraud amount is approximately ₹2 crore, excluding potential unidentified cash transactions, and indicated the figure might increase after a forensic audit.
Based on the complaint, the Hyderabad CCS police have registered a case under multiple sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), including criminal breach of trust by a clerk or servant, cheating, forgery for the purpose of cheating, using forged documents as genuine, falsification of accounts, and criminal conspiracy.
