Police in Gujarat launch a special drive against usurious moneylenders preying on distressed borrowers

In Surat, 34 cases were filed in the first week of January and 31 accused arrested; people are urged to come forward and file cases against loan sharks

Ramesh Koli, a 35-year-old farm labourer in Surendranagar district, had borrowed ₹30,000 from a moneylender in July 2022. Over the following two months, he repaid the principal ₹30,000 along with ₹50,000 as interest but the moneylender threatened that he would have pay ₹30,000 more or “face the consequences”. Finally, Mr. Koli paid the moneylender ₹15,000 to settle the issue with the help of the village sarpanch.

In another of many such examples, in a village in Botad district, Kana Rathod, a farmer, had borrowed ₹60,000 from a local moneylender, who took away part of Mr. Rathod’s agricultural land as recovery against the loan. Mr. Rathod eventually had to sell his land to the moneylender.

In September 2022, Nitin Makwana, 45, a resident of Ahmedabad, ended his life after he was harassed by a moneylender who lent him ₹50,000 and recovered ₹5 lakh. In the First Information Report (FIR) registered after his suicide, Makwana’s wife Jennifer accused three persons — Mahesh Rabari, Champaben Rabari and Sendhabhai — of driving him to take the extreme step after he was forced to pay them over ₹18 lakh.

In Rajkot, a 37-year-old woman was allegedly repeatedly raped after her husband, an autorickshaw driver, failed to repay ₹50,000 he had borrowed from a private moneylender. The woman filed a case in the last week of December 2022.

Reports of cases involving the menace of private moneylenders, registered as well as illegal, are frequently reported across Gujarat.

“They are bloodsuckers. They charge exorbitant interest rates ranging from 5% to 10% per month on the amount they lend to the borrower,” Surat Police Commissioner Ajay Tomar said. He has invited the public to come forward and file cases against loan sharks in the city.

He said registered moneylenders can only charge up to 12% interest per annum from a borrower who has provided security against the sum borrowed, and up to 15% per annum when security is not provided.