At least 15 women members of a Self-Help Group (SHG) of Bijadihi village under Kamakhyanagar police limits in Dhenkanal district have threatened to commit suicide en masse after they were cheated of Rs 15 lakh by a fellow member and her husband.
After gaining the trust of the illiterate women, SHG president Mamata Sahu and her husband Dushmant Sahu allegedly withdrew Rs 15 lakh from a finance company in their names and are now on the run.
The matter came to the fore after the finance company employees reached the village to collect the EMI amount. The incident has caused unrest in the village. The victim women alleged that their husbands are beating them up and not allowing them into their houses.
Based on a complaint by the women, Kamakhyanagar police registered a case in this regard and have launched a manhunt to nab the absconding couple.
According to sources, 15 women had formed a SHG in the village. They would take a certain amount of loans from banks and private finances and use the amount for creating some income source. Later, they would repay the loan amount on a monthly basis.
However, SHG president Mamata Sahu and her husband allegedly offered sweets and drinks to the women and clandestinely took their fingerprints on paper. Later, the couple withdrew Rs 15 lakh using the fingerprints of the victims and fled the village.
Now, the agents of the finance companies are pressurizing the victims to repay the loan amount. This has led to a rift between the women and their families who are left helpless as there is no trace of the accused couple.
On one hand, the finance agents said that they were under pressure from their company to collect the loan amount while on the other hand, the victims are at the receiving end with no money to pay for the loan.
With no other option, the women have threatened to commit mass suicide if no steps are taken in this regard.